For Now, Forever
by Anna-mathe
Summary: Knuckles is on a Quest. But is it all worth it?
1. Priorities

  
  
)---------- Priorities  
part one of "For Now, Forever"  
written by Anna-mathe  
  
The huge snake whipped forward, cotton-white mouth opened. Knuckles   
threw up one arm to shield himself. He felt the cobra's weight and fury   
on his wrist for an instant. Then the reptile coiled back. Knuckles clawed   
away, horrified eyes seeking the wound. But instead of his flesh, the   
snake had bit his wrist-communicator. He was unscathed.  
But the serpent would not let it's victim escape so easily. It   
advanced again, it's oily body pouring over the ground. Knuckles couldn't   
seem to move fast enough to get away. Panting, he stopped and turned   
desperately to face it. With a loud hiss the top five feet of it's body   
reared erect, the hood spread wide.  
Someone struck an instant before the snake did. A blur appeared out   
of nowhere and slammed into Knuckles, sending him sprawling sideways. The   
cobra, not caring who it killed, struck at the person. It's mouth clamped   
onto his bare arm, the poison fangs sinking deep.  
Sonic grabbed the snake by the back of it's head, then cried, "Knux!  
Kill it! Kill it!" Knuckles, pale as a ghost but charged with adrenaline,   
picked up a large stick and brought it down on the reptile's head. The   
cobra released Sonic's arm, only to be driven to the ground by another   
blow from the stick. Knuckles struck with all his strength, again and again,   
crushing the head of the serpent.  
At last the creature was dead. Knuckles, trembling all over, turned   
to Sonic. "T-thanks," he stuttered. "Y-you saved me--" Sonic was standing   
stock still, staring down at his arm cradled against his chest. Knuckles   
looked, too.  
The bite was deep, but only a thin stream of pale blood traced   
down Sonic's arm. Sonic and Knuckles locked eyes. There was no known cure   
for a Mobian Cobra bite. Even the anti-venom often proved useless, and   
the Freedom Fighters had none. In a very real sense, Sonic had given his   
life for Knuckles's.  
"Go for help," Sonic said, his voice clipped. "I'll stay here; if   
I move it will only spread the poison." "Right," Knux replied. He was   
almost sick from what had happened, and very very scared. He turned and   
ran in the direction of the Great Forest and Knothole Village.  
Tall grass had grown in the outer limits of the garbage dump   
surrounding Robotropolis. It had grown and died and grown again for years,   
forming perfect snake territory. Knuckles had been scouting when he disturbed   
the cobra.  
Sonic felt no pain, but he knew it wouldn't last long. Being bitten   
by a Mobian Cobra was one of the most painful ways to die. It shut down   
the bodily functions one by one, even as it intensified the senses. But   
strangely, all Sonic felt was a creeping coldness settle in his arm.  
He felt no fear of what would almost definately happen. Instead,   
he was filled with sadness. Sadness of all he would leave behind . . .   
Sad that he might not be able to go through with the reason Knux   
had come to the Great Forest in the first place, just over two weeks ago.  
  
It was evening, and it was almost dark before Knuckles returned with  
Dr. Quack and Princess Sally. No one else had been told of what had   
happened; they didn't want chaos to erupt in Knothole.  
Sonic hadn't moved an inch from where Knuckles had left him half an  
hour ago. The three approached him silently. No one said a word as Dr.   
Quack examined the wound.  
For a long moment - too long a moment - he still said nothing.   
Sally, her voice breaking slightly, gave in to her impatience and asked,   
"Well?"  
There passed another moment before the doctor replied.  
"The wound is small."  
Exasperated, Sally let out a long sigh.  
"And?!" she demanded. "Will he be all right?"  
"The poison will have taken its full effect within three days.   
After that, well . . . "  
Knuckles made a strange hiccupping noise and bolted from the scene.  
Sally and Dr. Quack really didn't even notice, but Sonic glanced after him  
strangely.  
Then he turned his attention to Sally. He still hadn't spoken   
since they arrived, and now found that his throat was too choked up for him  
to make a sound.  
Also silent, she knelt down and wrapped her arms around him, both  
of them shaking with fear and sadness.  
  
Knuckles kept running.  
Where he was going, he didn't care. He just had to keep going. Had  
to think.  
Sonic had agreed to help him. Because of that promise, the hedgehog  
was now slowly dying one of the most horrible deaths devised by the All   
Powerful.  
There was nothing he could do. Nothing.  
As this thought ran through his mind over and over, the Guardian bit  
down unconsciously on his lower lip so hard that he could taste the blood  
in his mouth.  
The salty flavor finally restored some sense of responsibility to   
him, and he stopped running. All at once exhaustion swept over him and he  
flopped down on the ground and tried to set his priorities.  
The sky was now completely dark except for the stars which shone  
brightly on such a moonless night. Somehow, they reminded him that he was  
a long way from home, and unless he acted somehow, he might never again set  
foot upon the Floating Island as Guardian. Alive. And his friends . . .  
This was the reason he'd come here in the first place, the reason he'd asked  
for Sonic's help . . .  
  
*********  
  
It had begun a day as any other on the Island. He'd emerged from  
his hut, still rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, and headed to the Chaos  
Chamber, as was his morning ritual. His first priority was to the Island,   
and if all was not well with the Chaos Emerald, then the Floating Island   
was toast.  
These quiet mornings were one of the things he cherished above all  
other things. During his walks to and from the Chamber were the only time  
he'd allow his mind to drift back to his earlier childhood. The days when  
his father was Guardian. The days when everything was still beautiful.  
Somehow things were different now. Ever since his father's   
unexplained departure, he'd been filled with a loneliness that sometimes  
threatened to overwhelm him. There had been times when he would look around  
himself and be swept over with an almost chaustrophobic feeling. He'd   
scream and shout for someone to answer him, but the only answer he'd receive  
was that of a woodland creature of some sort who happened by. Then he'd   
just stand there, unthinking, unfeeling.  
Then he'd met the Chaotix. His first real friends he'd ever had.  
Later, of course he'd had his run-ins with Sonic and the Freedom   
Fighters. The emptiness his father's departure had left would never   
disappear, but at least he was no longer alone in his life.  
All the same, things were different now. Everything seemed   
darker. His purpose was beginning to lack . . . purpose!  
And so, on these morning hikes, he'd let his guard down enough to  
just lose himself in the memories of earlier, happier times until he reached  
the Chamber.  
  
Inside the Chamber, he sat down beside the emerald and stared at it.  
Something was amiss - he could feel it. The emerald was . . . sending him   
a feeling of . . . violation?  
That didn't make sense. No one was here. There was no one on the  
Island who shouldn't have been, and everyone there certainly knew better   
than to mess around down here.  
So what was up?  
"Why, I am, you foolish echidna!"  
Started beyond your imagination, Knuckles looked up in time to see  
the air shimmer just above the emerald. Out of the shimmer floated a being  
like none he'd ever seen before, but recognized instantly from legends and  
tales he's known since his infancy.  
Before he even realized it, he gasped the word: "Firelance!"  
"That's my species, echidna. Don't wear it out. I don't feel you   
need to know my name." The Firelance nonchalantly settled himself on top of  
the emerald and made himself comfortable. "I know yours already, Knuckles,   
Guardian of the Floating Island. It's good you know me, though. It saves   
me the effort of explaining why you shouldn't bother even trying to oppose   
me."  
Knuckles gritted his teeth. Sure, he knew better than to rile a   
Firelance, but this one's attitude was pushing his limits of tolerance.  
"What do you want?" he demanded curtly.  
The Firelance waggled an admonishing finger at him.  
"That's not very polite, is it, echidna?"  
Knuckles crossed his arms nervously.  
"I'm not one for small talk," he informed the one who was sitting  
on the Chaos Emerald in the Chaos Chamber on the Floating Island over the   
planet Mobius. "I prefer to get right to the point, so the rest of my   
day'll still be free."  
The Firelance laughed.  
"Actually, Guardian, you may have more time on your hands than   
you'd like to think about."  
For a moment, the scarlet Guardian made no reply as he registered   
what was being implied. Then his eyes narrowed with a sudden flood of  
nearly irrepressible anger.  
"What do you want?" he repeated, this time in a low, threatening  
voice that would have sent chills down the spine of any normal being.  
Firelances were not normal, however, and this one especially   
seemed to be aware of the fact that there was nothing the echidna could   
do to defend himself if he attacked him.  
He chuckled.  
"Temper temper, echidna. Don't patronize me."  
"Believe me, I'm everything *but* patronizing," Knuckles coldly  
informed the intruder.  
"True." The Firelance took a deep breath. "I want from you, in   
twenty days, the answer to the following question. Consider it a   
challenge, if you will." And here he narrowed his oblong, amber eyes.   
"Where is the portal to the NeverZone?"  
"The NeverZone?" Knuckles repeated, confused. "What the heck is  
that?"  
"It, echidna, is the basis of every legend and tale of folklore on  
this Island."  
"And if *you* can't find it, how do you expect *me* to, Firelance?"  
Knuckles demanded, now seething.   
"Who says I don't know where it is?" was the calm retort.  
"Well if you know, then why the hoo-ha do you want me to find it   
for you?!"  
"Because if you don't I will wipe out every bit of life with the   
misfortune to be on the Island right now. Whether or not they are here   
twenty days from now. Location means nothing to me. Those who are hear at  
this moment will perish in twenty days if you don't bring me the answer I   
want."  
Shocked, Knuckles inhaled so sharply it hurt his throat.  
"Why?" he gasped. "Why would you kill everyone here because I   
couldn't answer something you already knew?"  
Instead of replying, the Firelance vanished.  
  
After some time of absorbtion, Knuckles left the Chamber to seek   
out the Chaotix and explained to them the situation.  
Naturally, they were somewhat disturbed at the possibility of their  
lives ending in less than three weeks.  
"What do we do, Knux?" Espio inquired.  
Knuckles sighed.  
"Well, I don't think the portal is here on the Island. I mean, I've   
never seen it. Have any of you?"  
The four of them slowly shook their heads.  
"Dang. I'd hoped . . . never mind. Anyway, I want you guys to   
comb the Island. If you find anything, go to the Chamber and give your   
answer to the Firelance. And hope he'll accept your word instead of mine."  
"Where're you gonna be?" Mighty asked.  
"I-I'm gonna go to Knothole. Maybe I can get some information from  
the Freedom Fighters."  
"Too bad we don't have more to go on," Espio mused softly. "'The  
basis of every legend and tale of folklore on this Island'? I don't get   
it, Knux."  
Suppressing a shudder, Knuckles admitted, "I don't either, Espy."  
  
Shortly afterward, Knuckles left the Floating Island for Knothole  
Village. As he glided down to the Mobian surface, the thought crossed his  
mind that he might never see the Chaotix again, if he didn't find this   
portal.  
Of course, it wouldn't really matter to him. He'd be dead too.  
With that pleasant thought occupying his mind, Knuckles landed on   
the coast of the Mobian Ocean. He stood there for a moment, staring at the   
horizon over the water, trying to get a last glimpse of the Floating Island,  
but it was past his range of view.  
Sighing, he turned and began to head inland.  
He hadn't been walking for a particularly long time before he was  
discovered. Fortunately, though, it wasn't by Robotnik or his sentry bots,  
as he'd worried, but by the very person he was looking for.  
A blur of blue seemed to appear out of nowhere and run countless  
circles around him before coming to an abrupt stop in front of him.  
No introduction is needed as to the identity of the new arrival.  
"Yo, Rad Red," Sonic greeted. "What brings you this far from the  
Floating Isle?"  
Knuckles swallowed what bit of pride he still retained. He had   
higher priorities than the old quarrels between the two of them.   
"Sonic, I need your help," he simply stated.  
The hedgehog raised a somewhat skeptical eyebrow.  
"You sure?"  
Instantly, the rage boiled.  
"Listen!" Knuckles almost shouted. "The lives of everyone I care   
about is at extreme risk here, and you're still doubting my integrity?! Do  
you honestly think I'm joking about this?!?!"  
"Woah there, down, Simba!" Sonic quickly cut in. "I'm not doubting  
your word. I just wanted to make sure you come in peace."  
"Worse," Knuckles glumly admitted. "I come in desperation."  
"All right," Sonic conceded, sitting down on a rock. "Why don't you  
tell me exactly what's going on here?"  
And so the Guardian sat beside the Freedom Fighter and explained the  
encounter with the Firelance in the Chaos Chamber.  
"That's the story," he mumbled by way of an ending. "I have no clue  
where to find this 'NeverZone' Portal."  
"And you were hoping maybe someone in Knothole would have an   
answer?" Sonic presumed. "Fine, we'll check around. One question."  
Knuckles spread his hands wide.  
"I'll tell you whatever I can."  
The reply apparently surprised Sonic.  
"Man," he quietly exclaimed, shaking his head. "You really *are*  
desperate!"  
"Wouldn't you be?" was the whispered reply.  
"Yeah . . . I take your point. Anyway, what's a Firelance?"  
The echidna's body convulsed slightly in a heavy shudder.  
"Until this morning, they were only legends."  
"What sort of legends?"  
"The kind parents use to spook their kids into behaving. They look  
like seven foot scorpions, emitting a bright golden glow, and they have  
power over temperature and motion. It may not seem much like a superpower,  
but they could suddenly boil the whole planet alive . . . or stop the   
heartbeat of everyone on the Floating Island. Legend has it that they last  
appeared two thousand years ago, on the day that the first Guardian took up  
the mantle. The Firelance made the warning that unless the Chaos Chamber  
was sealed - at this time it was guarded, but basically open to everyone -  
that he would destroy all life on the Island." The similarity from the   
ancient tale to the current situation sent another shudder throughout the  
Guardian. "The Guardian didn't think the Firelance had the powers it   
claimed to have, and dismissed the concept, insisting that the Chamber was  
safe, and that no one could harm the Emerald in any way. Shortly after, he  
was killed by laserfire in a citizen uprising. The Chamber remained open.  
Noting this, the Firelance changed the temperature in such ways that violent  
storms covered the entire planet for an entire day, causing before unimagined  
damage."  
"The first Day of Fury," Sonic whispered.  
Knuckles nodded.  
"Life on the Island was allowed to continue, however, because of the  
almost instant placement of a new Guardian. The Firelance made the same   
warning to him as he did to his predecessor, and with the Day of Fury barely  
behind the people, the Guardian did as the Firelance had ordered. After   
that, there are no proven sightings of a Firelance, although the stories   
have been racking up like leaves in the fall over the last two millenia."  
"Powerful," Sonic simply noted.  
"You got it."  
"Well then, let's go see what the others at Knothole have to say   
about thi - "  
"Sonic, wait."  
Pausing even as he'd begun to break into a sprint, Sonic looked over  
his shoulder at the echidna who was climbing to his feet.   
"Yo?"  
It took Knuckles a moment to brace himself for the words he was   
about to say.  
"Don't tell them what's going on."  
"WHAT?! Knux, buddy, how do you expect to get any help with this if  
no one knows what's going on?"  
"It's not so simple. You know your people. You know which ones   
you'd trust with something huge, and which ones you wouldn't. I don't. And  
I can't trust someone just because you or Sally or anyone else tells me I   
can. This involves the wellbeing of everyone on the Floating Island, and I  
can't just go trusting everyone with that wellbeing."  
Sonic's glare forced Knuckles' gaze to meet his own.  
"But you trust me?"  
Biting his lip sharply against a reflexive bitter remark, he   
replied, "Yes. We've had our run-ins in the past, but even when we were on  
opposite sides, I could always tell where your honor lied. Sometimes I just  
couldn't bring myself to admit it."  
The blue Mobian took a deep breath and let it out slowly.  
"I'll help you," he said in a serious tone. "I promise, I'll do   
whatever it takes to help you save your people, even without the others'   
help."  
Knuckles nodded, swallowing a well of emotion.  
"Thank you."  
  
The arrival of the echidna in Knothole caused a bit of a stir, as  
well you may imagine. Sally's first reaction to the news was that he and  
Sonic must have battled it out once again, and now both needed to be patched  
up from the fight, so she was a bit surprised to find what good terms the  
pair of them seemed to be on.  
Knuckles told Sally that he was looking for something important, but  
that he couldn't say anything more than that. After careful consideration,  
she accepted that as an excuse and let him stay in the village. When   
inquired by the other villagers, he would just smile and say, "Circumstance."  
It was perhaps more true than anything else he could ever say.  
  
His first clue came to him on his third night in Knothole, after a   
day of searching as best he could through the Great Forest and trying to   
weasel information out of the villagers. It came in the form of a blue blur  
and a small grey computer.  
"Sally doesn't know," was all Sonic said, depositing Nicole on the  
table in the hut Knuckles was staying in.  
Nothing else needed saying.  
Knuckles picked up the computer and inquired of her databanks   
anything regarding the NeverZone.  
"Access denied. Unauthorized voice code," was all she would say in  
reply.  
"Hey, Nicole! I'm authorizing him, okay?" Sonic almost snapped.  
"Right, my main hedgehog. Searching databanks."  
As she searched, Sonic and Knuckles exchanged a nervous look.  
"One entry found."  
Knuckles' hopes sank. Only one?   
"From the ancient 'Legend of the Sky': 'Wherever the battle for   
freedom and peace wages, the Chaos Warrior will find the NeverZone: its  
entrance at their feet, its power flowing through their veins. Only with  
the NeverZone's exposure can the Chaos Warrior overcome his enemy.'"  
Sonic blinked.  
"Yeah, what you said, Nicole."  
"No, hang on!" Knuckles interjected, excitedly. "It makes sense!"  
"Do tell," Sonic suggested.  
"Don't you see? Chaos Warriors. Sonic, that's *us*!"  
As that sunk in, Sonic let out a whistle.  
"Hey, I think you're right. We two are the only people on Mobius to  
have used a Chaos Emerald to achieve ultimate forms!"  
"So the entrance to the NeverZone should be at our feet . . . that's  
where I'm lost."  
"If there's one thing I've learned in this danged war, Knux, it's   
that whoever writes these ancient legends had an uncanny knack for telling   
the future. If they say that the portal is at our feet right now, you and   
I, here and now, then the sucker's gotta be close by to Knothole."  
"Underground. From the wording, I'd bet it's underground."  
"I agree. We've got seventeen days to check every cave and cranny   
in the area, trying to find an underground chamber with a portal to another   
dimension. Cheer up, Knux. This'll be a cinch."  
  
And so the two of them pored over the area of the Knothole   
territory, following up every lead they found, under the excuse that they   
were out patrolling.  
"Don't you think you guys are doing an awful lot of 'patrollong'?"   
Sally inquired one day.  
Sonic shrugged.  
"Fine. We're not patrolling. We're scouting. Anyway, we're   
catching up."  
"On what?!"  
Sonic shrugged again.  
"Guy stuff."  
  
When it got down to the last week, though, Sonic began to get   
worried, and Knuckles began to get downright scared. They'd found countless  
holes in the ground and many good sized caves that Sonic had taken note of   
as possible supply caves and storage space, but still had found nothing   
resembling a portal.  
"What if we misinterpretted the passage?" Knuckles fretted.  
"Don't think that," Sonic snapped. "You can't. Us having   
interpretted that thing correctly is the only chance you and everyone else   
from the Floating Island have. We just have to keep looking."  
To cover more ground, they split up in their search. Knuckles, who  
had better night vision, would often be out "scouting" an hour or two before   
the sun came up.  
"Don't you ever sleep?" Sally inquired of him one day, feeling   
concerned and a little bit upset at the suspicion that he was keeping   
something from her.  
"Naw, I'm tryin' to quit."  
The Princess sighed.  
"Look, Knux, whatever you're looking for can't be so important that   
you should risk your health over it."  
"I'm going out now, Sally. See you later."  
  
If only it had crossed Sonic's mind before, he would have warned   
Knuckles that the garbage dump area was not a good place to go prying into   
holes when alone, or anytime, for that matter. He'd not thought of it,   
however, and didn't think of it until that morning.  
"Sally, where's Knuckles?"  
"Where else? Out on his great search you two won't tell me about."  
"Don't put him down, Sal. This is real important to him."  
"Yeah, I noticed. I just wish you'd let me in on it! Maybe I   
could help - "  
"Where did he go?"  
"Who?"  
"Knux."  
"Oh. I think he said he was going to the garbage dumps outside   
Robotropolis."  
"He . . . *what*?!"  
Before Sally could repeat herself, Sonic was out the door and out   
of sight. The echidna was about to go prying around in every hole in one of  
the largest snake populations in the northern continent. He had to warn him   
before it was too late . . .  
  
*********  
  
Which brought everything up to the present. Knuckles lay there on  
the ground, staring at the stars and wondering if there was any chance left  
for the Floating Island. Or indeed, if there was any chance . . . for   
Sonic.  
A loud sigh escaped him, and he allowed his eyes to slowly close.  
  
"Priority four - echidna!" was the voice that woke him.  
Instantly popping his eyes open and jumping to his feet, he regarded   
the floating sentrybot with a threatening glare.  
"Oh yeah?! Well if I'm priority four and Sonic's priority one . . .  
then WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH PRIORITIES TWO AND THREE?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!"  
Without another word, he smashed his fist into the robot, sending it   
flying in hundreds of pieces.  
Knuckles was furious with himself. He'd fallen asleep! The   
critical days were upon him, and he'd fallen asleep! How long had he been   
out?  
His wrist communicator still worked, and it had a timekeeper built   
in. Seeing the date, he reeled back in shock.  
*He'd slept for an entire night and day!*  
Two days! Two days until the Firelance would return to the Chaos   
Chamber. Two days and Sonic would be dead. Because of this, in two days,   
he might also be dead, along with Mighty and Espio and Charmy and Vector   
and -  
"Get a hold of yourself, Knux!" he snapped at himself. "Think!   
You've gotta find the portal . . . " *What about Sonic? He saved your life   
. . . how can you not try to help him?* "Hundreds of people on the   
Island . . . " *But what about the one who was willing to do whatever it   
took to help them and you?* "Oh, blast it all."  
He had to think. He had to set his priorities.   
Should he continue his search for the NeverZone, or try to find a   
way to help Sonic?  
His first priority was, and always had been, to the Floating Island.  
But Sonic, who didn't share that priority, was dying for that priority. How  
could he not save him above all else for what he'd done for him?  
On the other hand, if he saved Sonic somehow and the Island payed  
the price, then the whole thing would be worthless. Sonic had given him one  
last chance.   
He had no right to let it pass by.  
  
*"Wherever the battle for freedom and peace wages . . . "*  
This was no good. He needed to go to the actual battle grounds.   
That meant . . . Knuckles looked over his shoulder at Robotropolis. That   
was where the battle waged. That was where he needed to be.  
"I hope this works," he muttered, beginning his approach to the city  
nervously. He should have been flailed for attempting to go through with   
this in bright sunlight, but, as he reasoned with himself, in the city, the   
smog is so think you can't see anything no matter what time of day it is.  
"' . . . it's entrance at their feet, it's power flowing through   
their veins . . . ' I'd bet I actually have to be hyper for this to work.   
DANG! How can I . . . "  
A psychic blast knocked him off his feet, just on the outskirts of   
the city.  
*Chaos will attend to itself.*  
The words floated in his head. The voice vanished all too quickly.  
His father's voice.  
There was no time to think about him . . .  
No time to remember . . .  
"Chaos will attend to itself," Knuckles whispered to himself. "I   
guess that's a go ahead."  
And he proceded to enter the city.  
  
When he emerged from the shadows he'd hidden in, it was directly   
outside Robotnik' palace.  
This was what it all came down to, after all. The ultimate battle   
in this war for freedom and peace would be here. Its outcome would   
determine the fate of all of Mobius. And today, it would determine the fate   
of the Floating Island.  
Almost instantly the SWATbots spotted him and advanced, screeching   
about priority fours. Knuckles was sick of hearing about priorities.   
Priorities got him into this mess. He severely doubted they'd get him back   
out.  
*Okay, Dad. Chaos will attend to itself. If I must be a Chaos   
Warrior, it'd better be now or never!*  
As these thoughts crossed his mind, he felt something. Something   
beneath him. A power that hadn't been there before, but seemed to be   
growing steadily. The presence of a Chaos Emerald.  
*There's a dormant emerald under the city!!* he realized with a   
start.  
The thought process had taken only a second, and the SWATbots were   
closing in on him fast. Reacting to his instincts, the echidna bashed the   
ground as hard as he could with his large, strong hands, and was amazed as   
the ground in front of him collapsed with ease under his blow. He reached   
down, grabbed the faintly glowing gem and jumped as high as he could.  
While at the height of his jump, he grabbed hold of the palace   
building and climbed as fast as he could, dodging laser-fire and being   
careful not to drop his precious cargo. When he'd reached enough altitude,   
he jumped from the wall and soared out over Robotropolis, hidden by the   
smog, and glided well outside of the city.  
* . . . it's power flowing through their veins . . . *  
As Knuckles began his descent, he noticed for the first time that he  
had transformed into HyperKnuckles. For a moment, he was still, shocked at   
having made the change without even realizing it, but then an idea hit him.  
"It's power flowing through their veins!!" he shouted to the wind.   
"That's IT!!"  
The wind didn't answer as HyperKnuckles shot back to Knothole.  
  
"Knuckles . . . " Sally said quietly when he entered Sonic's hut,   
deenergized and regular Knuckles once again. "Where've you been?"  
He didn't answer.  
"How is he?" the Guardian inquired of the Princess.  
"Not good," she reported softly, gesturing to the bed where the   
other Chaos Warrior lay.  
Sonic was either asleep or unconscious. Knuckles wasn't sure which   
was worse, considering the nature of his injury.  
"He's not going to make it," Sally said in a choking voice. "Dr.   
Quack's sure of it. His system can't fight off the venom . . . "  
"Hush, Sally," he admonished. "Don't be so sure."  
* . . . its power flowing through their veins . . . *  
"What do you mean?"  
"I think if he turns into SuperSonic for the amount of time it takes   
for the blood in his body to go in a full cycle, the energy will purify his   
blood. It should save him!"  
For a moment, Sally's eyes lit up, but then dimmed once again.  
"But we have no emerald."  
Knuckles held up the waking emerald he'd found in Robotropolis.  
"But we have no rings."  
"Sally," Knuckles said in a low, reassuring voice, "Chaos will   
attend to itself."  
Without another word, Knuckles silently moved to Sonic's side. He   
took hold of the hedgehog's hands, into which he placed the emerald.  
"Come on, Sonic," he hissed quiely. "Come on!"  
A brilliant flash of light erupted from the emerald with their four   
hands covering it. Sally was momentarily blinded, and when she rubbed the   
flash out of her eyes enough to see, she saw . . .  
HyperKnuckles and SuperSonic, standing side by side, grinning.  
She screamed and threw her arms around them both.  
  
A little later, after everyone had witnessed Sonic's recovery and   
he'd been able to return to his normal form, Sonic and Knuckles finally got   
a chance alone to talk.  
"Knux, I've gotta admit it. You saved my life." Sonic grinned   
sheepishly. "Thanks."  
Knuckles waved a hand curtly.  
"Don't thank me," he bluntly stated.  
Sonic blinked.  
"Why not?" he insisted. "You saved my skin, man! I have the right   
to thank you if I want!"  
"No," Knuckles insisted, shaking his head. "Don't you get it? I   
turned my priorities to the Island first. It came to me by accident to use   
the emerald to help you. I was going to let you die to save the Island.   
Instead, it flipflopped. You're peachy, but the Island . . . "  
It finally caught up with him. The Guardian collapsed to his knees   
and broke into sobs.  
"*Knuckles!*" Sonic snapped sharply, kneeling beside him and   
gripping his shoulders. "You listen to me. I know your priority is to your   
Island and your people. I promised to help you save them. You had to look   
after them first, even at my expense. If I didn't realize that, do you   
think I would've done what I did? It's a matter of my life, or hundreds of   
others. What other choice could you have made?"  
Knuckles felt limp.  
"Sonic, in one day, it won't matter. We never found any portal.   
The only thing that even relates to its existence is in that verse from the   
ancient legend. I've let down everyone on the Island, all my best friends,   
my ancestors . . . it just doesn't matter anymore."  
"It's not ever yet, pal," Sonic informed him. "You can't give up.   
You've got one day left to pull this together. If we just look at this more   
literally, maybe we can get it in time for you to - "  
"What if we don't?"  
"Knux, why are you being so pessimistic?!"  
For a long moment, the echidna didn't answer. Then he finally did,   
in a faint voice, saying, "Because I'm so scared."  
Sonic opened his mouth to reply, but a voice thundered in their heads  
before he could.  
"YOUR TIME IS UP, GUARDIAN!"  
A sick look of realization swept over Knuckles' tear-stricken face.  
"Oh no," he murmered. "The Floating Island moves in an eastwardly   
direction; the days are shorter there! It's too late - "  
Then, even as Sonic still held him, he vanished.  
  
For a moment, he thought he was dead.  
That moment was spent spinning through oblivion, unseeing,   
unfeeling, completely numb all around.  
*Is this it? Is this what eternity is like?*  
A sudden burst of sensation overwhelmed him as he re-entered the   
physical world.  
"Let's hope not, echidna. For that would be a very boring eternity  
indeed."  
Blinking at the sudden amount of light around him, Knuckles found  
himself back where it all started: the Chaos Chamber.  
Only now it was an inferno. The Chaos Emerald was surrounded by a   
wall of flame. Within this circle, standing atop the emerald, was the   
Firelance. Another wall of fire ran around the perimeter of the Chamber.  
Between the two walls stood himself . . . and the Chaotix, all appearing  
scared out of their minds.  
At his arrival, the four of them turned toward him in alarm, thier  
eyes asking the question they dared not put into words: had he found the  
answer?  
Deliberately ignoring them, the Guardian turned his attention to the  
Firelance. As their eyes met, the heat from the flames intensified   
fifty-fold.  
"Well, Guardian? Where is the entrance to the NeverZone?"  
Trembling, Knuckles stood silently.  
"Guardian, where is the entrance to the NeverZone?"  
*Think! Think! Wherever the battle for freedom and peace wages   
. . . at their feet . . . flowing through their veins . . . *  
"Guardian, do you have an answer?" the Firelance calmy inquired. As   
he spoke, Knuckles felt a strange tingling at his fingertips. Looking at   
his hands, he gaped in horror as they began to disintigrate before his eyes.  
Espio broke out, "Knux!"  
Vector covered his eyes with what was left of his own hands and   
turned the volume on his walkman up to the max.  
*In Robotropolis I found the emerald . . . it saved Sonic . . . I  
wonder . . . underground . . . at my feet . . . in the battle for freedom   
and peace . . . its power - power flowing through their veins . . . like  
the Chaos Energy did for Sonic . . . *  
"GUARDIAN! This is your last chance! Where is the -"  
"YOU'RE STANDIN' ON IT, DUDE!!!!!!" Knuckles bellowed as loud as he  
could.  
The flame around the emerald seemed to explode. Its force slammed   
the scarlett guardian to the floor, trying to shield himself from the blast   
of heat. He heard the shouts from the Chaotix.  
And then it was over.  
Whatever body parts had disappeared were back and in perfect working   
order, the flames were gone, and so was the Firelance. They were alone in   
the Chaos Chamber.  
Slowly, still almost afraid to move, they crawled back to their   
feet. Their gazes locked, conveying hundreds of different messages to each   
other that required and received no replies.  
Then Vector let out a loud whoop.  
"IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII-YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEAAAAAH, WE'RE HOME FREE!!!"  
And they all broke out into cheers.  
  
It wasn't very much later that the Chaotix, having not gotten the   
day-long nap Knuckles had, crashed under a tree near the perimeter of the   
Island.   
Knuckles himself, however, didn't feel he could sleep just now.   
There was too much to think about.  
It didn't make sense. Things just didn't fit together.  
The Chaos Emerald of the Floating Island was, in fact, the portal to  
the NeverZone. The verse from "Legand of the Sky" said that only exposure  
of the portal would allow him to overcome his enemy.  
That could mean that revealing its location would appease the   
Firelance and save the Island. Or else it could mean something else.  
The last recorded, proven incident with a Firelance had been when   
the creature had insisted upon the sealing of the Chaos Chamber. For some  
reason, they didn't want it open, and would rather wipe out all life on the   
planet than leave the Chamber unsealed.   
What if, somehow, the Chamber would have to be . . . unsealed? To  
allow the portal to be opened once again, open for eveyone to use to cross  
into a land of legend? Could that, ultimately, be the key to the final   
battle for Mobius?   
And, the point that weighed on his mind most heavily, why had the  
Firelances changed their minds?  
Two thousand years ago, they wanted it sealed. Now it almost seemed  
to the opposite: they wanted it exposed. Knuckles was almost sure the   
Firelance knew he'd come across the verse from the legend. For some reason   
which was as of yet unexplained, the creature had sent him on a quest with a  
goal he already knew. Why? If not to bring the verse to his attention, then   
why?  
And why had he heard his father's voice while on the Firelance's   
mission? How did *he* fit in with this? With the Firelances?  
Knuckles shook his head. There were, as usual, too many unanswered   
questions. What right did he have to answer them, anyway? His priority was  
to the people of the Floating Island. As long as they were safe under his  
protection, he didn't *need* to understand.  
A sigh escaped him.  
*Priorities. That's what it all boils bown to. My priorities. My   
father's priorities. The Firelance's priorities . . . *  
His thoughts drifted to Sonic. What were his priorities, that he   
could suddenly take Knuckles' as his own as well?  
*I guess Sonic's priority is to all life in general.*  
He laughed.  
*Lucky dog. I guess. I may not have to think as much about what I   
must do . . . but at least if he doesn't feel it's right, he doesn't have to   
go through with it anyway. A priority to life in general . . . It sounds   
intriguing. Something tells me I'd never get away with it, though.*  
Somehow, along this train of thought, it struck him to call Sonic   
and let him know what had happened. After all, those in Knothole had no   
communications with the Floating Island, but Knuckles still had his wrist   
communicator. Walking over to the edge of the Island so as not to disturb   
the slumbering Chaotix, he activated his link.  
"Hello?" he inquired. "Anyone listening?"  
For a moment, there was only static. Then there was a pop and a   
loud exclamation.  
"KNUX!!! Is that you?!" came Sonic's loud and joyful shout.  
"Last time I checked, I was still me and intact. Although I was   
worried for a moment there . . . "  
"Man, you scared the socks off me! I thought you'd bought it right   
there!"  
"So did I, but it was just a teleport."  
"But what about the Firelance? Did you figure out where the portal   
was after all?"  
"Yeah, at the last moment. Get this! It was the Chaos Emerald all   
along! Right at my feet all this time."  
"But wait. Does that mean that the emerald you found in   
Robotropolis is also some kind of portal?"  
"Gosh, I don't know. The way this day's gone, I wouldn't doubt   
anything."  
There was a long pause.  
"Does anyone else get the idea that this is far from over?" Sonic  
asked.  
"Oh yeah," Knuckles agreed. "I think we've just begun." 


	2. Loyalties

  
)---------- Loyalties  
part two of "For Now, Forever"  
written by Anna-mathe  
  
Sonic stared at the Chaos Emerald.  
It was the one Knuckles had found in Robotropolis and left in   
Knothole. When it had been uncovered, it had been dormant, just regaining  
its energy. Then it had been used to save Sonic's life, while another   
emerald had been discovered to be a portal of some sort to another Zone.  
Now, though, this emerald was returning to dormancy.   
After only a few days, just when it seemed the gem was fully   
active, the power had begun to seep out of it. And now, even as Sonic   
watched, it lost its glowing luster and faded to a dull shade of gray.  
It was dead.  
Sonic continued to stare at it for a long time after it became  
dormant. He was trying to figure out what could be going on; what could  
have made it come to life in the first place, and what had now put it back  
to sleep.  
There were no answers.  
  
1)---------- Intruders  
  
Knuckles was in a similar dilemma on the Floating Island.  
As was his way, he was spending the early hours of the morning in  
the Chaos Chamber, observing the emerald. Now, though, he did it with new  
purpose.  
Ever since his final encounter with the Firelance, he'd been   
trying to again achieve an ultimate form without power rings, as he had  
before, but to no avail. It just wouldn't work.  
Whatever force had been at work in the realm of Chaos that day had  
dissipated into the air, because the emerald no longer produced any sign  
of strangeness.  
*Actually,* he thought, *it never did. Everything that happened  
happened through the emerald I left in Knothole. This one just sat here  
under our noses and almost wiped out all life on the Floating Island.*  
What intrigued him, though, was the task of figuring out how to   
use the emerald to enter the NeverZone.  
The NeverZone still had not been explained. All that was known   
was in the Legend of the Sky, an ancient tale that had been partially  
preserved over the thousands of years since its creation.   
He's asked Sonic to check Nicole's databank for the rest of the   
legend, but found that parts of it, most of it, in fact, had become   
intelligible in its oldest forms, and recent translations could not be   
held as accurate. Therefore, Nicole had no more to say on the NeverZone  
than she had before. Any part of the legend that could have explained was  
lost to time.  
Entering the NeverZone would, supposedly, become the deciding   
factor in "the battle for freedom and peace", but that was a battle that  
could go on forever, or another day. How does one determine the battle   
for freedom and peace? How was he to know if he could ever find the answer?  
*And so they tell me Chaos will attend to itself. Sometimes I   
really hate my life.*  
At that moment, disrupting his thoughts, the emerald began to glow  
a deep red shade: there were intruders on the Floating Island.  
  
Instantly, he left the Chamber and let his hereditary link with  
the emerald guide him to the site of the disturbance.  
As he approached the area, he could tell even from a distance what  
the disturbance was: badnik attack from the surface of Mobius. They were  
destroying everything they could, but had a slight problem.  
The Chaotix were on the job.  
Taking this as a good sign, Knuckles landed beside them and   
engaged in the battle.  
*Dang! SWATbots? Who's Robotnik tryin' to kid?*  
"'Ey, Knux, good of you to join us!" Vector sang, socking a   
SWATbot in the face and sending it flying.  
"Glad to be here!" Knuckles lightly replied, joyfully repeating   
the croc's action.  
"Any idea what all this is about?" Mighty called from where he was  
taking down about half of the invasion force single-handedly. "I mean, why  
are there 'bots on the Floating Island?!"  
By the time Knuckles answered, the invading forces were already  
either down for the count or running.  
"I dunno. Maybe Robotnik had a surplus he wanted to eliminate."  
"Why bother, though?" Espio inquired, sitting down. "What would  
be worth the effort of shipping a load of SWATbots up here? What could he  
possibly gain?"  
"Anything," Knuckles told him. "We don't know the motive for that  
attack. Our friend in Robotropolis could be planning anything."  
"Like what?" the chameleon persisted.  
The echidna shrugged.  
"I dunno. Just everyone keep your eyes open. Whatever the deal   
is, I'm sure we'll here about it soon enough."  
  
The ordeal had Knuckles a bit worried. In fact, it had him very  
worried. Robotnik left the Island alone. He had, ever since his first   
and only attempt to take it over.  
It didn't make sense for him to now send a squadron of SWATbots to  
the Island when there couldn't have been any real hope they'd do any major  
damage before being flogged to death.  
Mobius was one thing. The Floating Island was a world all its   
own, a world in which the Guardian had the upper hand through a link with  
the emerald and use of its powers. And Knuckles was the Guardian.  
Still, Robotnik wasn't stupid. Insane, yes, but not stupid.   
Something was up with this situation. Something was very much up.   
At the moment, Knuckles was heading back to the Chamber. If   
anything had been left behind, the emerald would be able to tell him. The  
directional guidance was gone, but that didn't mean that there couldn't be  
something or someone left that could cause trouble.  
He popped down the hidden passageway to the Chamber and landed  
lightly on his feet. The emerald was closer to its usual bright shade,   
but something was still amiss.  
Concerned, Knuckles placed one of his hands against the cool,   
smooth side of the gem, and an image filled his mind.  
There *was* someone. Something. It wasn't a regular 'bot. Its  
shape didn't resemble a SWATbot, a stealth bot, a sentrybot, or any other  
kind he knew. Still, it was indisputably a robot.  
And it was heading, at immense speed, away from the Chaos Chamber.  
*DANG IT!!!* Knuckles shouted inwardly. *Whatever it is, it works  
for Robotnik, and it knows now where the Chaos Chamber is!*  
The emerald grew suddenly hot to the touch. It was trying to keep  
Knuckles' attention, for it had more left to say.  
Knuckles returned his focus to the gem. He needed to know where  
the intruder was going, where he could cut it off and destroy it before it   
disclosed its secret.  
With the destination of the retreating intruder imprinted on the  
Guardian's mind, he took off after it with cold determination to   
personally render the robot limb from limb.  
  
When he intercepted the robot, it was at the site of mass   
destruction.   
The area he recognized instantly with a sinking feeling as Espio's   
home was in more than a shamble, it was burning to the ground.  
For a moment, Knuckles forgot about the intruder and called   
frantically for his friend, hoping that he'd seen the robot approaching   
and gotten away before it attacked.  
Then he saw them.  
Leaving.  
Flying away . . .  
  
An hour later, Knuckles was explaining the situation to the   
Freedom Fighters via the wristband Knuckles still had from his short   
tenure with them in Knothole.  
He and the remaining Chaotix were reporting in with much   
reluctance to admit that one of them had been captured by an intruder they  
had allowed to get away.  
"You say it was a robot of some kind?" Sally asked for   
confirmation.  
"Yeah," Knuckles confirmed. "One like none I'd ever seen before."  
"Could you be a little more specific than that, pal?" Sonic   
suggested.  
"Well, it wasn't very large. About as big as you or me. In fact,  
at a first glance, if I didn't know better, I'd almost think it *was* one  
of us . . . blue. That's all I could tell from the distance between us.  
And it had the glare of the sun bouncing off it, so I couldn't see it very  
clearly."  
There was an uncomfortable silence on the other end.  
"Well?" Knuckles pressed. "Do you guys know anything about this?"  
Sonic cleared his throat.  
"Okay, Knux. From what I can tell, it sounds to me like you've  
just had your first encounter with a mecha."  
"A what?"  
"Sort of super robots. They're way tougher than any regular 'bot.  
Robotnik gave 'em artificial intelligence, and a lot of really nasty   
stuff. Watch your step, Knux."  
"Mechas, huh? Well, what about Espio?"  
"Get on down here, and we'll form a rescue team."  
"Right. Floating Island out."  
Knuckles turned off his communicator and sighed.  
"What're we waiting for?!?!" Vector yelled. "Let's go!!"  
The echidna glared at him so angrily that he almost burned holes   
in the croc's head.  
"That thing knows the location of the Chaos Chamber. Someone's   
gotta keep it guarded."  
Charmy slapped his own face.  
"Knuckles, dang you and your twisted priorities! If the emerald  
means more to you than your friends, go ahead and guard the dang thing, and  
we'll see to this!!"  
"Hold it, Charmy," Knuckles ordered fiercely. "We're all going.   
But first I've gotta move the Island."  
Mighty looked confused.  
"The Island's always moving, Knux."  
"I mean move it off course. Somewhere so way off that Buttnik   
won't be able to find it for awhile. Hang on, I'll be right back!"  
And before any other objections could be made to him, he sped away   
from the scene.  
  
2)---------- Searches  
  
"So what's the plan?" Knuckles asked Sonic.  
The Chaotix and three Freedom Fighters, Sonic, Sally, and Bunnie  
Rabbot were crouched in the shadows outside Robotropolis, observing the  
situation.  
Sally answered.  
"We've received information that there are now three roboticizers  
in the city. They're where we want to go."  
"You think they roboticized him?!" Vector snapped in alarm.  
"Most likely, that's what they intend to do," Sally somberly   
replied.  
"It can't happen," Knuckles vowed. "Where are the roboticizers,  
Sally?"  
A diagram of the city was displayed midair by Nicole.  
"In here," Sally said, pointing to one building, "here," she   
pointed to another, "and in the palace."  
"I recommend splitting up," Sonic advised. "We'll cover more   
ground, more quickly."  
"Agreed," Sally quickly ordered. "Bunnie and Charmy, you two   
together. Mighty and Vector, with me. Sonic and Knuckles, you two head on   
into the big one."  
"Right," they both consented and took off for the capital.  
  
"Why me?" Knuckles mumbled, looking up at the looming structure.  
He allowed himself one shudder, then followed Sonic in through a small air  
duct in the back wall, when no 'bots were looking.  
The tunnel was so small that the two Mobians had to crawl on their  
hands and knees to fit at all.  
"This way," Sonic directed, moving first through the piping. "I've   
done this a pathetically large amount of times before. Just follow me."  
"If you've done this so many times, are you sure none of Robotnik's  
little creations are on to your little spot?"  
"No way!" the hedgehog laughed, looking back. "A SWATbot couldn't  
find one of our passageways if we jumped into one right in front of 'em!"  
"Maybe not, but what about one of those mechas you told me about?"  
"I doubt they'd consider it their priority."  
Saying this, Sonic turned forward again and continued on into the  
maze of air ducts they'd entered.  
After a few minutes of silent crawling, Knuckles asked, "How many  
of these things are there?"  
"Mechas?"  
"Yeah."  
"Well, so far they've only activated one. Mecha Sonic."  
"Catchy name."  
"I thought so." Sonic scratched his head and continued. "On our  
last mission here, Sally found information that ol' Buttnik is actually  
building more of them. We don't know for sure how many, but it seems he's  
gathering up quite an army."  
"If there are so many, would we be able to stop them from   
conquering what's left of free Mobius?"  
From where Knuckles was crawling, he could see the shudder run  
through the hedgehog's body.  
"Dunno. We'd have to see."  
Knuckles could tell Sonic doubted their chance of victory.  
  
"There it is," Sonic whispered, pointing down a vent beneath them.  
Knuckles peeked through, gawking slightly at the huge, cylindrical   
structure.  
"That's the roboticizer?"  
"Shore is, Knux. Let's watch. Somethin's going on down there."  
Indeed, two SWATbots were having a conversation below.  
"When is he arriving?"  
"Soon, the master says."  
"How soon?"  
"Unknown.  
"Is the machine ready?"  
"Affirmative. Roboticization process standing by."  
That said, the two robots exited the room, leaving it unguarded.  
Knuckles turned his glance to Sonic.  
"It's standing by."  
"We can remedy that, I'm sure," was the Freedom Fighter's cheerful  
reply. He reached down and removed the vent, quietly setting it on the   
floor beside him. "Come on," he told Knuckles, jumping through the hole   
and landing lightly on his feet.  
The echidna quickly followed his example, and the two of them   
approached the controls for the machine.  
"What do we do?" Knuckles speculated. "It looks pretty complex."  
"Knuckles, my friend, the more complex they are, the easier they   
are to break."  
That said, Sonic went along the keyboard, pounding heavily on   
every button. Knuckles watched with interest, then suggested, "Hey, can I  
try something?"  
An electric crackle ran along the console.  
"Sure," Sonic replied. "This thing's already pretty much   
trashed."  
Knuckles raised one big hand and knocked in half the panel.  
Around the broken, dented area, lights flickered and went out.   
Then the roboticizer began to also glow with an electric crackle.  
"Woah!" Sonic gaped. "Now it's thoroughly trashed! C'mon, Knux,   
let's get outta here before the thing blows!"  
"Ooo, sounds like a plan!"  
As the sound of machinery revving up filled the room, the duo ran  
out the door and charged up the hall.  
"The roboticizer's gonna explode any moment," Sonic recapped.   
"But we've still gotta see if Espio's in here before we split."  
"Where would - AHH!"  
Knuckles' question had been cut short by a sudden, searing pain in  
his right shoulder. Clasping his left hand to the wound, he realized that  
his blood was flowing out from both ends of the . . . what had hit him?  
As he turned to look back, Sonic grabbed his good arm.  
"Don't stop! We've been spotted! Run!"  
Laser fire filled the air as the two bolted from the scene, barely  
dodging any more injuries. Knuckles began to feel a bit short of breath,   
and he was losing feeling in his right arm.   
*Ignore it. Just keep going!*  
They did. They both did for a few seconds longer.  
Then the corridor became a blazing inferno. The explosion from   
the roboticizer filled not only the immediate area, but the fire pushed  
through the corridor, taking down everything in its way. SWATbots were  
being incinerated even as they fired at Sonic and Knuckles.  
The sting from the heat reached the pair, and Knuckles realized   
that they could not outrun the explosion's blast. In the split second   
during which this transpired, Sonic grabbed a power ring from his pack   
with one hand and grabbed Knuckles with the other. Then they both   
vanished from the scene, using the chaotic power to boost their speed.  
  
When Sonic released his grip on Knuckles' arm and they both came  
to a halt, they were outside Robotropolis again.  
"How bad is it?" Sonic instantly demanded in regard to the laser-  
wound the echidna had obtained.  
"Not very," Knuckles assured him. "It just startled me."  
"Yeah right!" Sonic objected, leaning to examine the Guardian's  
shoulder. "The sucker went all the way through! You're danged lucky not  
to have lost use of your arm!"  
"I didn't, though. It'll be fine. But we didn't find Espio."  
Sonic released an exasperated sigh and walked over to a nearby,  
somewhat sickly-looking tree. Reaching up and plucking two broad leaves,  
he returned to Knuckles.  
"These aren't in the best shape, but they'll hopefully stop the  
bleeding," he remarked, pressing a leaf against each end of the wound   
until the blood dried and held them on. "And as for Espio, let's just   
wait and hear what the others found out."  
On cue, Sally's team showed up.  
"All right," she began. "He's not there. We combed the dungeons,  
and he's not on the list to be roboticized, either. What we did find,"   
and she produced a small diskette, "is that Robotnik does, in fact, know  
the location of the Chaos Chamber. And he's sent a mecha to check it   
out."  
"Gol dang it!!" Knuckles exclaimed. "And no one's on the Island   
to guard it!"  
"What else is on that disk, Sal?" Sonic inquired.  
"Mainly encoded information we'll have to figure out back at   
Knothole."  
"A point in our favor," Mighty said to Knuckles. "While we were  
there, we heard a report. The mecha seems to be having trouble finding   
the Island. I guess moving the trajectory was all that was needed."  
"Not for long, though," Sally cut in. "Stealthbots are being sent  
all over the planet searching, and every one of Robotnik's stations on   
Mobius is scanning for the Island. They expect to have covered the planet  
in two hours."  
Knuckles muttered something under his breath that is best not   
repeated.  
"Did you guys have any luck?" Mighty asked Sonic and Knuckles.  
Sonic scratched his head.  
"Well, we didn't find Espio, but we did manage to blow up a   
Roboticizer."  
"Blew it up?!" Sally repeated in surprise.  
"Yeah. I think it took out most of the palace building, too."  
"Oh, that's a plus."  
"Of course it is, but it's not what we came here for."  
"No, but it's still a plus."  
At that moment, Bunnie and Charmy appeared on the scene.  
"Mah oh mah!" Bunnie gasped, crouching over to catch her breath.   
"That down there's a madhouse!"  
"Yeah!" Charmy agreed. "Something big went down in the palace. The  
streets are swarming with 'bots!"  
"I recommend we get the hoo-ha outta here before they find us!!"   
Bunnie adamantly suggested.  
"Did you find anything?" Knuckles insisted, even as they began to  
head back to Knothole.  
"Nuthin' doin', Knux. No sign of him ever bein' there."  
  
3)---------- Discoveries  
  
The weary Guardian, upon reaching the Chaos Chamber, flopped down on  
his back and stared at the ceiling.   
Night was setting on the Floating Island, ending one long and   
painful day, and beginning goodness only knew what. What Knuckles did know   
was that at any moment, if not already, Robotnik's satellites and scanners  
would locate the Island and move in with the mecha. And, after hearing a   
few tales from Sonic and the Freedom Fighters, he didn't look forward to a  
brawl with the thing.  
A brawl seemed unavoidable, though. With the location of the Chaos  
Chamber revealed, the enemy could gain total control of the Island instantly  
. . . if they got control of the emerald.  
Knuckles didn't intend to allow that to happen.  
On top of it all, the location of the fourth member of the Chaotix  
remained a mystery. It was as if he'd faded from existence once he's faded  
from Knuckles' sight, in the grasp of the mecha.  
It had been a long and painful day.  
Now Knuckles decided to get what sleep he could before the fireworks  
started up again. A heavy blow had been done to Robotnik, apparently, when  
the roboticizer had exploded. Maybe that would buy them some more time to   
prepare . . .  
  
When the signal of intrusion woke him, he was surprised to find not  
a mecha at his doorstep, but Sonic.  
"What are you doing here?" he inquired by way of greeting after   
meeting the hedgehog near the entrance to the Chamber.  
"Stating a point."  
"What point is that?"  
Sonic sat on a rock and made himself comfortable.  
"You said that the Firelance made the second Guardian of the Island  
seal the Chaos Chamber to outsiders."  
Knuckles searched his memory quickly.  
"Yeah. So?"  
"So?" Sonic leaned forward and rested his head in his hands. "If  
the Chamber's sealed against intruders, than how is it compromised now?   
Won't whatever barriers set in the Chamber keep it safe from the mecha?"  
"Oh." Knuckles blinked. "Oh, I hadn't thought about that . . . I  
don't know why not. I just know that it won't."  
"How do you know? Who's ever gotten in?"  
"You. The Chaotix. Certain Firelances throughout the ages. No one  
should be able to get in besides a Guardian."  
"But something had been done. An ancient Guardian managed to seal  
the Chamber against any intruder. How could he have done that?"  
"Man, if I knew, I'd be sleeping a lot easier right now."  
"You aren't sleeping."  
"Tell me about it." Knuckles grimaced. "In the last few weeks,   
it's dawned on me just how little I actually know about the Chaos Emerald.   
I don't know how to seal the Chamber, I certainly don't know how to enter   
the NeverZone . . . "  
"The passage also said that the portal must be exposed. Maybe   
legend's just doing its job."  
"'Chaos will attend to itself'?" Knuckles quoted with a grin.  
Sonic shrugged and grinned back.  
"It at least seems pretty good at watching its back."  
"But it's already been exposed. Just recently, me, the Chaotix, and  
our local ethereal being chewed each other out down there."  
"But the legend said for the portal itself to be exposed. The   
Chamber isn't the portal, the emerald is."  
"But if the emerald is removed, the Island's gonna crash."  
"Okay, let's scratch the whole plan." Sonic noted the fresh bandage   
on the echidna's shoulder. "Who did that?"  
"Mighty. The only way they'd let me have any peace."  
"Be glad. You just may need that shoulder when we face off against  
your local mecha."  
"Ha." Then a glitch in phrasing caught the Guardian's attention.  
"We?"  
Sonic crossed his arms and laughed.  
"Knux, you think I'm gonna miss you tanglin' with my arch-enemy? In  
your dreams!"  
Knuckles was about to retort, but stopped right before speaking with  
his mouth hanging wide open in shock.  
"What?" Sonic inquired, seeing the expression on the echidna's face.  
"Knux? What's wrong?"  
Quickly rising to his feet, Knuckles looked over his shoulder and  
said simply, "He's here."  
Sonic blinked.  
"How do you know?"  
"Hmm. Let's just say Chaos is attending to itself."  
  
The Chaotix, along with Knuckles and Sonic, were waiting for Mecha  
Sonic as he touched down in the Sandopolis Zone.  
The mecha, once landed, just stood and stared at them with his   
glowing, impassive red eyes, waiting for them to make the first move.  
Knuckles took it upon himself to do just that.  
"What have you done with Espio?" he demanded, stepping forward.  
Mecha didn't answer.  
That was all it took for Knuckles to lose his temper, but Vector  
refrained him from starting any violence just yet. The croc put a   
cautioning hand on the echidna's good shoulder and also took a step forward.  
Despite the circumstances, the Chaotix watched this with some   
interest. It was very out of Vector's character to step into something like  
this. Everyone waited to see what he had to say.  
After glaring at the intruder for a moment, Vector flatly stated:  
"Man, you suck."  
Mecha Sonic gasped, and his eyes blazed even darker. Clenching his  
fists, he ignited his jets and blasted at the croc.  
Vector laughed maniacally and stepped out of the way. Mecha,   
unprepared for this move, smashed into a pyramid.  
"HAHAHAHA! You're nothin' but another lousy bricklayer, and I'm the  
Wrecking Ball of Joy! HI-YAH!!" Vector screamed, hurling a brick at Mecha's   
head.  
Now, this turn of events had not been in Mecha's plan. In fact, he  
was so thoroughly torked that he activated the energy blaster in his right  
arm and zapped at the croc.  
Even this didn't work as planned, though, because Vector, being the  
slick sucker that he was, managed to dodge enough that only his tail got a   
bit singed.  
"HEY, BUBBA!!!" he yowled. "Knux!!" he appealed to the echidna, who  
was watching the scene with the same shock as the others. "Snap out of it!  
Are you gonna let that metal creep get away with that?!"  
Knuckles blinked.  
"Euh, of course not, Vector."  
Mecha spoke for the first time.  
"And just what do you intend to do about me, echidna? beep   
Priority four, echidna!"  
The priority four echidna walked up so that he was right in Mecha's  
face and hissed, "Man, I SO am sick of you people and your priorities!"  
Mecha regarded him cooly.  
"And, I repeat, just what do you intend to do about me, echidna?"  
Knuckles made no verbal reply; he just slammed his bladed fist into  
Mecha's face.  
Once the motion was complete, though, and before he could regain his  
balance from delivering the blow, Mecha grabbed a handful of his deadlocks  
with one hand and slammed the echidna back in the face with the other. The  
blow, coming from such a source, stunned the Guardian for a moment.  
Next thing he knew, Mighty had attacked Mecha with enough force that  
the 'bot went flying back a few yards.  
Howling with rage, Mecha flew straight back into the armadillo, and  
now Mighty went flying.   
Charmy decided to copy Vector's movement and threw a brick at Mecha  
Sonic, giving Sonic and Knuckles both the chance to get in a good sock in  
the robot's noggin.  
Enraged, Mecha took to the air and jetted quickly away.  
"He's heading for the Chaos Chamber!" Knuckles shouted, still seeing  
a few stars.  
"On it!" Sonic called, racing away towards the Chamber. Knuckles   
and the Chaotix took off after him.  
  
When they arrived on the scene, it was to a very strange and intense  
sight. Sonic and Mecha Sonic were running circles around each other, both  
trying to get in a hit, but managing to outrun each swing taken, leaving   
them both unscathed.  
Knuckles took it in with a glance, then searched the ground for a   
moment. Producing a heavy club of wood that had been resting on the mossy  
ground, he silently approached the pair.  
*They haven't noticed me. Too engrossed with each other. It must  
be neat to have an arch-enemy.* Just next to the battling pair, he paused.  
*Gotta time this just right . . . *  
"Knux, what'cha doin'?" Vector called, startling the echidna so much  
that he brought the club down with enough force to ground both combatants.  
With the two of them going at the speed at which they had, the sudden   
interruption brought on by Knuckles' weapon knocked them both out cold.  
"Whoops," Knuckles mumbled in regard to the unconscious hedgehog at  
his feet. He knelt down and shook him. "Hey! Uh, Sonic? You all right?"  
Moaning with exaggerated volume, Sonic shook his head and opened his  
eyes.  
"Knux, what the hoo-ha did you do that for?"  
"Sorry," Knuckles sheepishly replied, helping Sonic up to his feet.  
Mecha Sonic, who had been in temporary system shock, regained   
control of his systems at that point and, without a word, shot up into the  
sky and vanished over the horizon.  
Sonic rubbed his head, gave a cruel glare to Vector, and turned his  
attention to Knuckles.  
"You okay?" the echidna asked.  
"Oh, sure. 'Tis but a scratch." He lowered his voice considerably.  
"It won't be so easy next time, though. Don't leave the Chamber unguarded,  
not for a minute."  
  
Later, Sonic had returned home to Knothole (he'd come by plane),  
Knuckles had explained the path of their conversation to the Chaotix and  
they'd put together a guard shift for the Chamber. Having taken the first  
watch, Knuckles leaned against the pedestal containing the emerald and took  
a small comfort in its current serenity. Sure, the gem would alert him if  
anything or anyone came near the Island, but he couldn't be sure he'd get  
there in time even if he knew it was coming.  
*There's gotta be a way to seal the Chamber against intruders. I   
just wish I had some clue as to how to do that exactly . . . *  
He sighed and tried to muster up some sort of chaotic energy. No  
matter what he tried, though, nothing seemed even close to the effect he  
wanted.  
Eventually, Mighty showed up to take the next watch.  
"Anything happen?" the armadillo inquired of the echidna.  
"Zip," Knuckles replied, yawning. "Now, if you don't mind, I am  
going to go home and hibernate. Let me know if any mechas or Firelances  
show up."  
"Will do, Knux!" was the cheerful response to that.  
Despite his fatigue, however, the Guardian was utterly deprived of  
sleep. For a long period of denial, he lay in his bed with his eyes closed  
and his quilt pulled up to his nose, trying to prove to himself that he was  
asleep, but finally gave in to logic and tried to think.  
*How could I seal the Chaos Chamber, anyway? It seems almost   
impossible. After all, what do I have in common with the second Guardian?*  
Then he blinked.  
*The task was originally put to the first Guardian. And I . . . *  
  
Realization swept over him, and he jumped out of bed and ran back to  
the Chamber.  
"Knux?" Mighty greeted in surprise. "Forget something?"  
Knuckles paced some aggravated circles in the Chamber.  
"N-no, not really. I just thought of something. Maybe it doesn't   
mean anything at all . . . but I just thought of it, and it bothers me."  
"What?"  
Exasperated and still weary, the echidna plopped on the floor beside  
his comrade.  
"Sealing the Chaos Chamber was the task of the first Guardian, until  
it fell to the second."  
"So? What's that have to do with you?"  
"That what I thought. Then it hit me." Knuckles glumly rested his  
chin on his knees.  
Mighty waited for a moment, then asked, "What?"  
"Mighty, did it ever strike you that I'm the *last* Guardian of the  
Floating Island?"  
"Huh?" Mighty blinked. "What do you mean?"  
Knuckles waved his hands around aimlessly.  
"Think about it. I'm the last echidna on Mobius and the Floating  
Island. And since only an echidna can be a Guardian . . . *  
"You think that, whatever the reason that the Firelances wanted this  
place open only to you Guardians, now they're planning for what they'll do  
with the place . . . after you're gone?"  
Shrugging, Knuckles replied sullenly, "You got a better   
interpretation?" He sighed. "I have just received a sudden feeling of  
mortality."  
Mighty was still running the concept through his head.  
"They're planning for your death, then? But why? I don't get the  
connection with them and you. It's almost like you're working for them in  
some way, and don't know it."  
A shudder went through the Guardian's limber form.  
"For all I know, maybe I am."  
"Um . . . let's just leave chaos to attend to itself."  
"Good call," Knuckles agreed, nodding. He looked over at Mighty,   
who was appearing very concerned. Apparently, the armadillo didn't want to   
think about Knuckles' eventual death any more than Knuckles did.  
For a while after that, they both just sat there, chatting about  
various things, but not really paying much attention.  
Finally, Mighty said, "Look, Knux, I know your upset, and I know  
you're worried, but I also know you're dead tired. Why don't you just get  
some sleep? We can try to figure something out when all of us get together,  
and after we find Espio."  
"Good call."  
  
This time, the Guardian fell asleep without too much trouble. It  
was if the revelation wouldn't let him sleep until he not only acknowledged  
it, but got it off his chest.   
He'd spent about three hours in a deep sleep, when he was awakened   
by a tap on the shoulder.  
"Knux, I think you'd better look at this."  
Opening his eyes, he followed Mighty's frantic gaze to the Chaos  
Emerald, once again glowing deep red.  
"What's it mean?" asked the armadillo.  
The echidna sprang to his feet.  
"There's an intruder on the Island!"  
Then, from out of nowhere, there came a voice.  
"Excellent deduction, Guardian."  
Spinning around, the two Mobians gawked in surprise at the being who  
stood there, grinning metallically.  
"Espio - ?" Mighty finally choked out.  
The roboticized chameleon grinned wider.  
"How about that. You remember me."  
  
4)---------- Confrontations  
  
Knuckles was still in shock.  
"But you - you're - you're a - "  
Espio cut in.  
"A robot? Yeah, you could say that. I'm a prototype in a new  
technology Robotnik's tampering with."  
"Which means what?" Mighty demanded.  
"Which means I'm somewhere between the usual roboticized Mobian and  
the standard issue mecha. Basically, a robian with the capabilities and   
powers of a mecha. Class dismissed, now I shall kill you both."  
As fast a lightning flashes, Knuckles pounded Espio upside the head,  
sending him slamming into the wall of the Chamber.  
"No way, man!" the echidna shouted. "You're not killin' anybody,   
and we're gonna find a way to deroboticize you!"  
"HA!" Espio snapped, firing a laser beam that was dodged by the two  
warriors and bounced harmlessly off the surface of the Chaos Emerald. "Get  
real! Your friends on the Mobian surface have been trying to find an   
effective deroboticizer for years! You're not going to live that long!"  
Mighty lunged at Espio, knocked him down, and held him down as   
Knuckles laid another heavy blow to the mecha-robian.  
"They're your friends too!" Knuckles shouted.  
Espio ignited his rocket-boosters and shot into the air, throwing  
both of them to the floor.  
"Not anymore, echidna! crackle Priority four, echidna!"  
That blew Knuckles over the edge. To hear that phrase come out of  
the mouth of a person who, two days ago, had been one of his closest friends  
in the world, well, it was too much.  
He shot through the air, slamming into Espio with so much force that  
he crashed hard enough to dent both his metal casing and the Chamber wall.  
Eyes glowing angrily, Espio jumped into the air and shot out of the   
Chamber. Knuckles followed.  
  
********  
  
Down on the Mobian surface, in Knothole Village, Sonic had a   
revelation of sorts himself.  
Rotor had been picking at the strange emerald for the last couple of  
days, trying to figure out something, anything, about its behavior. At the  
end of the day, (it was evening on Mobius while it was the middle of the   
night on the Floating Island) Sonic had stopped in to check progress. With  
him, he carried something with which he hoped to elicit a response from the  
dormant gem.  
Rotor looked up as the hedgehog entered his lab.  
"Sonic! What're you doing with . . . all those power rings?"  
"Specifically, fifty power rings, Rotor. This thing turned me and  
Knux into our ultimate forms without any aid from rings. Let's see what  
happens if we try doing this by the numbers."  
Waving his hands to indicate consent, Rotor said, "Go for it. But  
just what do you expect to find out?"  
Sonic shrugged.  
"I'll tell you when I find it out."  
Without another word, the hedgehog, still holding the fifty rings,  
approached the Chaos Emerald and picked it up, holding it tightly. A jolt  
of energy ran through him, giving him a start. Then came another, slightly  
longer. These jolts came more and more rapidly, lasting longer and longer,  
until he thought the transformation was finally going through, but then the  
energy flow ground to a halt.  
As the chaotic energy left Sonic's veins, it seemed as if his   
natural energy left him as well. He slumped against a wall and took a deep  
breath.  
"Whew. Rotor, I think this thing is permanently fried," he said.  
"Maybe you should just give it up," Rotor suggested in a concerned  
tone.  
Sonic was about to reply, when a forceful blast of energy swept   
through him, taking his breath away. His skin began to tingle, his body   
felt lighter and more limber, and his strength felt as if it knew no bounds.  
A shining yellow glow gleamed out from him.  
The transformation was slow, but successful. He was Super Sonic.  
"Hey, it works!" he exclaimed in surprise. "Woah!" The emerald   
took flight. It just flew right from his hands.  
Freezing in the center of the room, it hovered for a moment. No   
longer was it dormant and dull; it shone a bright, dazzling pink. The color  
was unnatural for an emerald, and Sonic and Rotor stared at it for a long   
moment. Then, just as Super Sonic took a step toward it, its glow increased  
to a level where, even in his ultimate form, he had to shield his eyes.  
When the light dimmed, the emerald fell to the floor, now a normal   
shade of green.   
Standing just behind where it fell was a woman feline.  
The hedgehog blinked.  
"Who are you?" he asked in surprise.  
She looked at him with huge, startled, pale blue eyes, gasped, and  
vaporized.  
"What the - " Rotor exclaimed.  
Vaporized was the perfect word. Without so much as a flick of her  
finger, her body disintegrated into a mist that hung in the air and then   
evacuated the room via an open window.  
Sonic stared at the window.  
"Rotor, do you have any clue what just happened?"  
The walrus shrugged.  
"Hey, you're the Chaos Warrior! I just work here."  
  
********  
  
Espio grabbed Knuckles by the shoulders, swung him around in rapid  
circles, then released him flying through the air.   
Knuckles immediately adjusted his angle and caught the air in his  
dreadlocks, allowing him to whirl back and collide with Espio with the same  
amount of force that had sent him flying in the first place.  
They both hit the ground with a loud thud and rolled through the  
grass a few times before coming to a halt. After this halt, Espio pushed  
himself up to his knees and glared at Knuckles.  
Knuckles did the same, wincing at the pain in his shoulder from the  
antagonized wound.  
"What's your gameplan?" the Guardian demanded in a low voice.  
"crackle Just to destroy you. Any further orders will come   
then, once I report in successfully."  
Snarling in pure rage, Knuckles jumped back in the air, calling on  
a power he didn't know he had, soaring up into the sky and daring the mecha-  
robian to follow into the clouds.  
Espio took the bait and took off into the air, his rocket-booster   
allowing him to catch up with the echidna within moments.  
"Give it up, Knuckles!" Espio yelled into the wind, swinging at him  
and missing his target.  
Knuckles dodged and performed a perfect aerial loop, coming back   
around and aiming a kick in the mecha-robian's back.  
"I think not, friend!" he shouted, watching the metallic chameleon  
fall about twenty yards before stopping his descent and righting his   
position.  
"Fool! Don't think our former friendship will buy you any leniency!  
My master demands you dead by sunrise!"  
Laserfire from Espio's wristgun lit the night sky, and as Knuckles   
frantically dodged in the air, he could see Mighty standing on the ground,  
watching.   
Now, the echidna known as Knuckles was not at all experienced in   
aerial combat, seeing how until this night he'd never done anything but  
glide. However, the chaotic energy was now churning wildly through him, and  
he found himself acting on instinct, maneuvering through the air with ease  
and grace that surprised him, or would have, had he stopped to think about  
it. He didn't stop to think, though. Instead, he allowed the instinct to   
guide him through the battle, thinking about nothing except vanquishing his  
target.  
The mecha-robian known as Espio had not expected this form of battle  
from the Guardian. His organic memory banks told him that the echidna   
couldn't be performing the feat in which he was currently involved: that he  
should have been limited to the land. Instead, the target was flying   
through the air with an air of expertise. Espio was well equipped for any  
type of combat, but the surprise of aerial attack had him taken a bit aback.  
Knuckles moved as if to attack Espio head on, but swerved away at  
the last possible moment, soaring past the metallic chameleon to twist back  
and attack from beneath.  
Espio was caught off guard, as had been planned, and stumbled in the  
air from the blow. His right leg was severely damaged by the blow, which   
had sent sparks flying into the darkness.  
Retreating a few yards, Espio tried to assess the damage from the  
last few hits he'd received, but before he could conclusively compile the   
data, the echidna somehow appeared behind him and landed a hard kick between  
his dual rocket-boosters, knocking one of them off line and damaging   
integral circuitry. Screaming in denial, he began to lose altitude.  
Determined not to fail, he ignited his remaining rocket-booster to  
full power, which slowed his descent for a moment, after which Knuckles  
struck again, this time caving in the booster with his bladed fist.  
Now with nothing to keep him aloft, Espio fell to the ground.  
  
As he watched his opponent fall, Knuckles felt the anger drain from  
him. The threat to the Island was gone. Espio had been defeated . . .  
And to what end? What would be done with him now?  
Still energized by the adrenaline from the battle, the Guardian flew  
down and caught the metallic chameleon in his arms just before he hit the   
ground.  
Espio crackled a bit. His vocal circuits had been all but   
destroyed.  
"Don't speak," Knuckles ordered in a hard voice. "And don't move.  
Just don't do anything, while we figure out what to do with you."  
Being drained of the capability to fight it, Espio capitulated and  
went limp in Knuckles' arms.  
Satisfied, the echidna landed at last and set the mecha-robian on   
the ground.  
Mighty ran up to them, followed by Vector and Charmy, who had seen  
the fireworks and hurried to the scene.  
"Man oh man," Vector breathed, looking over the damaged form of who  
had once been Espio the Chameleon. "What do we do now, Knux?"  
Knuckles knelt down beside Espio.  
"That depends entirely on you," he told his former comrade. "Will  
you willingly remain our prisoner until we find a way to reverse the  
roboticization process, our will we have to restrain you by force?"  
Espio lifted his head about an inch.  
"I crackle must obey sizzle my master, beep Robotnik."  
Staring impassively down into the metal face, Knuckles nodded.  
"So be it. You are hereby to be retained by any means necessary, by   
order of the Guardian of the Floating Island."  
Closing his eyes, Espio let his head fall back to the ground.  
  
5)---------- Speculations  
  
Imprisonment facilities on the Floating Island were not state of the  
art or especially fancy, but they were very secure.  
Mecha-robian Espio had been deposited in one of these cells: a deep  
hole in the ground, encased on all six sides with six-inch thick titanium.  
Knuckles had immediately placed a call to Knothole, asking if Rotor could  
come and have a look at this damaged robot.   
There had to be a way to reverse the process. And Espio couldn't   
die before that solution had been found.  
"Man, Knux," Mighty told Knuckles as they sat waiting for Rotor to   
arrive. Vector and Charmy were at the Chaos Chamber, making sure another  
invader didn't catch them off guard. "You look like crap."  
"Actually," Knuckles contradicted, checking his reflection in a   
puddle, "I think I look more like an echidna who made the mistake of taking  
on a crew of SWATbots, a mecha, and a mecha-robian all in one day."  
"Or that," Mighty conceded. "So, uh, are you all right?"  
Shrugging, the Guardian folded his arms behind his head and allowed  
himself to fall back in the grass.  
"I guess. Let's just say I'm in better shape than Espio."  
For a long moment, they were silent, still trying to fully   
acknowledge that their longtime friend had been turned against them, and had  
almost killed Knuckles in the service of Robotnik.  
"Well," Mighty finally sighed. "That must've been hard. Taking him  
down like that."  
A shudder ran through Knuckles.  
"Actually," he contradicted, "it was easier than it should have ever  
been. I just couldn't think. Now, though . . . "  
Mighty patted his friend's good shoulder reassuringly.  
"We'll figure something out, man," he said in a cool, confident  
tone. "We always do."  
At that moment, the bi-plane soared overhead, and a few minutes   
later, Rotor and Sonic arrived on the scene.  
"So let's see him," Rotor suggested, wanting to get right to   
business.  
The two residents of the Floating Island directed him down to the  
underground cell, then waited outside while he worked.  
"So after all that, he'd already been roboticized," Sonic murmured.  
"Man, Knux, Mighty, I'm sorry."  
"Have you guys had any luck at all with a deroboticization process?"  
Knuckles replied inquisitively.  
Shaking his head sadly, the hedgehog was forced to say, "No."  
"Well," Knuckles cheerfully stated, "that's going to change very  
soon, because we will find a way to save him."  
Rotor reappeared on the scene.  
"There was very little fatal damage," he reported. "I took care of  
that, but left the rest as it was. This way, you won't have to worry about  
him breaking out."  
"Do we have to keep him in pain?" Mighty inquired, grimacing.  
Sonic regarded him with a distant expression.  
"Remember," he said in a quiet voice, "the being down there is not  
you good friend Espio Chameleon. He's one of Robotnik's agents, twisted in  
every way possible for the forces of evil. If you give him an inch, he'll   
take the whole Island."  
Knuckles reluctantly allowed Rotor's actions.  
"Before we go, though," Sonic hesitantly said, "there's something  
else going on that I think you may want to hear about."  
The echidna raised his eyebrows.  
"Um, let's head over to the Chaos Chamber so Charmy and Vector can  
get the scoop too."  
  
Vector whistled.   
"Man oh man," he said in an almost reverent manner after hearing  
the Freedom Fighters' tale of the woman who came out of the emerald. "I  
don't believe it! They really do exist!"  
"Who would've thought?" Charmy mused. "And trapped under   
Robotropolis for all these years - "  
"I don't mean to interrupt," Sonic interrupted, "but exactly what   
are you talking about?"  
"A mistling, man!" Vector jovially informed him. "You dudes had an  
encounter with a mistling! Bow down, before it's too late."  
"What do you mean a 'mistling'?" Sonic demanded, exasperated.  
"A mistling!" the croc repeated, as if it should be the most obvious  
thing in the world. "Okay. Mistlings." For a moment, he stood ready to   
explain, but instead burst out laughing. "You seriously don't have a clue  
what I'm talking about, do you?"  
"Um, no," Sonic flatly stated, feeling a bit insulted.  
"Me neither," Knuckles interjected. "Pray, do tell."  
The heads of the three Chaotix swiveled around to regard Knuckles so  
quickly that you could hear the rush of wind.  
"No way," Mighty gawked. "Knux, how could you not know what we're  
talking about?"  
Suddenly very self-conscious, the echidna shrugged.  
"Hey, I just don't! It's not like a crime or anything. Don't look  
at me like that!"  
They continued to stare at him in a horrified manner.  
"Stop it!" Knuckles snapped. "So exactly what are you talking   
about?"  
Mighty cleared his throat.  
"Knux," he quietly asked, "you don't know the Song of Legends?"  
"No, I don't!" the Guardian replied, now becoming rather irritated.  
"What's the world coming to, when the local Guardian doesn't know   
the folklore of his own Island?" Vector sighed. "All right, Knux. Here's a   
lesson coming to you about ten years late. This is the Song of Legends."  
And, shaking his head as if still bewildered, the croc began to sing  
that which had been entitled the Song of Legends.  
  
"Do you believe in legends?  
in tales of times of old?  
Back in days of heroes and queens  
before the stone was controlled?  
  
"Unicorns and griffins,  
racing through the sky  
shining horns and gleaming wings  
passing on the fly?  
  
"Elementals of earth and wind,  
water and of fire,  
their powers sifting through life itself  
never to fade, never to tire?  
  
"Knights, warriors and heroes,  
chaste and pure and loyal,  
tall and strong and handsome,  
lives in service of the queens royal?  
  
"The queens, the queens!  
and ladies fair and true,  
their beauty and innocence shining bright  
to see the battles through?  
  
"Do you remember the little ones?  
Mistlings pale and clear?  
Swinging swords with grace and might,  
dissolving selves and fear?  
  
"Firelances, the strongest of all,  
some serving darkness, others light,   
watching others spin their webs,  
sewing and smashing with delight?  
  
"Now they rest within the vortex,  
residing in a strange and distant land.  
Their task remains within the Guardian,  
the watcher with the crescent band.  
  
"Remaining alone on the Floating Island,  
separated from those with whom they'd reigned,  
guarding the stone and those of the realm  
until the right to follow they've gained.  
  
As the last note died away, Knuckles could only blink in   
astonishment.  
"Knux?" Mighty gently asked. "Are you all right?"  
"Dang!" the Guardian softly exclaimed. "You know, I've never heard  
of any of this . . . except for the Firelances, of course."  
"It's a song we all learned as children," Charmy explained. "It  
never crossed my mind that you could possibly have not heard it."  
"Yeah, we just assumed . . . " Mighty began, but died away.  
Vector, on the other hand, had his usual lack of sense of the   
occasion.  
"Knuxy boy, you had no childhood at all, did you? C'mon! Every  
game we played as kids revolved around this stuff!"  
Knuckles gave Vector a hard glare.  
"No, I didn't have a childhood, as a matter of fact."  
Sonic felt he'd better break into this conversation before the   
Chaotix tried to rip each others' heads off.  
"Okay, there's one thing I don't get, still."  
"Only one?" Knuckles inquired, grinning.  
"Well actually . . . never mind. Anyway, the song said that these  
mistlings of yours seemed to like swords."  
Mighty nodded.  
"Yeah, it was the weapon of their trade. Turning into a mist form  
was a trick they'd use in emergencies, mainly for transportation purposes.  
When it came to fighting, they used swords."  
"But the one we saw in Knothole didn't have one," Rotor pointed out.  
"Exactly," Sonic confirmed.  
Vector thought about that one.  
"Well," he finally construed, "I guess she must be out looking for  
one. That's probably why she disappeared so fast. Without her weapon, she  
didn't want to chance you being hostile."  
"But where would a legendary being go to find a sword?" Knuckles  
wondered. "Or, uh, do you have a legend for that one, too?"  
"As a matter of fact, I do," Vector merrily replied. "Mistlings   
were a big deal. They got their own legend later on. Anyway, it's supposed  
to lie within the portal to the Land of No Eternity."  
"The Land of No Eternity?" Knuckles repeated incredulously. "You  
mean - "  
"I follow you, Rad Red!" Sonic cut in excitedly. "The NeverZone!"  
"All this is fine and dandy," Vector then stated, "but y'all are  
forgetting one very important thing in your speculations."  
"I agree," Mighty sighed. "We still haven't decided what to do with  
Espio."   
"Well," Rotor slowly suggested, "there may be a way to resurrect his  
old memories enough to override his programming. It won't bring his body  
back, but it'll at least bring back his spirit."  
"It's something," Knuckles quickly interjected. "Let's go for it!"  
  
Vector and Charmy were left at the Chamber to keep watch while the   
others hurried back to the cell in which the mecha-robian was being   
contained.  
"Just try to jog his memory," Rotor was explaining. "Anything that  
would be held as particularly important to him, something that would always  
guarantee a reaction in his former state."  
"We'll think of something," Mighty confidently stated as they   
approached the cell.  
"Espio!" Knuckles called down. Then he froze and stared down the  
hole in surprise.   
"Knux? What is it?" Sonic asked, coming up beside him.  
"There's no one there."  
"I don't believe it!" Mighty exclaimed, peering down. "Remember who  
we're dealing with!" Infuriated, he reached down and yanked the door open,  
snapping the lock off with his immense strength. Before anyone could stop  
him, he'd dived down to the cell floor. "Okay, pal, where are you?!" he  
shouted.  
The air shimmered and the metallic chameleon appeared behind the   
armadillo.  
"Mighty - !" Knuckles yelled in warning.  
Espio moved quickly. His left arm was still sparking and sizzling  
from damage, and it was this arm with which he grabbed onto Mighty, letting  
him have it with a few thousand volts.  
"Iy-EEEEEEE!!!!!" Mighty screeched before losing consciousness from  
electrocution.  
"HALT!" Knuckles bellowed, jumping down in front of the pair. "Let  
him go!"  
Espio released Mighty from the live wire but maintained a hold on him  
with his good arm.  
"He's still alive," the mecha-robian growled in a crackling voice.  
"However, should you take one step toward me, I will remedy that situation   
immediately."  
Knuckles held his ground, not moving forward, but not backing down   
an inch.  
"Let him go," he repeated.  
Espio laughed.  
"I think crackle not. Now, step back against the wall. That's  
it. Hands on your head. I'm not taking a chance of you trying anything."  
"I don't know what you intend to accomplish," the Guardian growled.  
"You're immobilized. You know you can't get away. Just let him go, and we  
won't hurt you."  
"But I can get away," Espio contradicted with his metal grin.   
No sooner had his words died away than there was a blaze of   
rocketfire overhead, and Mecha Sonic landed in the cell beside Espio.  
"Thanks for coming," the former chameleon greeted.  
"Any time," Mecha replied, almost affectionately. "The master wants  
your report. Come."  
The mecha took hold of the mecha-robian and took off into the sky,  
Espio still carrying Mighty.  
Knuckles ground his teeth so hard that he chipped one of them. The  
only thing he could do was watch, for if he made a move to stop them, Espio  
still had the power to sizzle Mighty to a crisp.  
While he was seething and the two robots were watching him seethe,  
Sonic went into action. Leaping into the air and, forming his figure eight  
spin, he kept himself in the air with his speed and flew up straight between  
Mecha Sonic and Espio. Startled, Espio released Mighty, whom Knuckles   
quickly Flew up and caught. Sonic fell back to the ground; he couldn't keep  
altitude for very long. Mecha grabbed Espio by his wrist and took off as  
fast as he could, heading back for Robotropolis.  
"Get some water!" Knuckles yelled, trying to revive Mighty. Rotor  
took off to oblige. "Come on, man, wake up!"  
Sonic, after making sure Mecha didn't change course, returned to the  
echidna's side.  
"How is he?" he nervously inquired.  
"Not very good, but I think he'll pull through." The Guardian shook  
his head. "Dang! I can't believe this! Espio - man, Sonic, thanks. If   
you hadn't acted when you did - "  
"Hey!" Sonic interrupted. "Calm down! You're on the verge of   
hyperventilating! Take a deep breath and get a grip, man!"  
"You're right, you're right," Knuckles agreed, still breathing a bit  
out of control. "I just can't believe any of this is happening!"  
"Well, it is," Sonic simply stated. "But you can't go to pieces.   
You've gotta keep it together so we can find an answer."  
Rotor reappeared, carrying a bucket of water which he promptly   
splashed over the armadillo's face.  
"Hey!" Mighty whined, regaining his senses. He rubbed his eyes and  
sat up. "Okay. What happened?"  
"Are you all right?" Knuckles implored.  
Mighty scratched his head.  
"No, actually. I feel like my head's been stomped on."  
"C'mon," Sonic said, helping Mighty to his feet with Knuckles.   
"We'll take you home. You need rest."  
  
It took some time for Knuckles to persuade Sonic and Rotor that they  
could go home. The two Freedom Fighters were concerned that their help   
might be needed, but finally the echidna convinced them that he and the  
remaining Chaotix could still handle the Island, and if they needed help,  
they'd call.  
After they'd left and Mighty was sleeping soundly, Knuckles filled  
the details in to Vector and Charmy, who were shocked, to say the least.  
"Man oh man," Vector sighed, shaking his head. "This situation is  
really gettin' me down."  
"That's putting it mildly," was Charmy's comment. "Espio's been   
roboticized, so he turns around and sizzles Mighty to a crisp, while we've  
got a paranoid mistling lurking around the planet who probably is out   
looking for this Chaos Emerald so she can get her sword and figure out   
what's what, and during the meanwhile, we just get to sit here and be   
nervous!"  
"In a nutshell," Knuckles assented. "Anything happen here during  
all this?"  
Vector shook his head.  
"No . . . " He stood opposite Knuckles, and now looked past the   
echidna at the emerald, suddenly shocked. " . . . except that the emerald  
just turned blue."  
"Wha - ?!"  
Knuckles whirled around, and sure enough, the Chaos Emerald had   
changed to a bright blue shade.  
"Woah!" Charmy exclaimed. "What's that one mean, Knux?"  
Scratching his head in bewilderment, the scarlet Guardian replied,  
"Heck if I know!"  
As the three watched, an amazing light burst forth from the stone,  
and a long, golden and silver sword slowly arose from the shimmering blue  
surface.  
The sword hung there in the air, suspended by a power unknown to the  
three bystanders, still engulfed in the blue glow of the Chaos Emerald.  
"Wow," Knuckles breathed.  
"Wow's the word!" came a bright voice from behind them that shocked  
out their living daylights.  
Even as they spun around to regard the new arrival, she stepped   
forth to claim her prize.  
A faint mist floated around her white/pearlescent fur as the   
mistling crossed to the center of the Chaos Chamber and grabbed her sword   
from the air. She smiled and swung it back and forth a few times, then   
looked up with her large, sky blue eyes, pushed back a lock of her light,  
almost white hair, and spoke to the three Mobians who were staring at her.  
"Are you the Guardian of the Realm of the Sky?" she inquired of   
Knuckles.  
"Euh . . . I'm the Guardian of the Floating Island."  
She shrugged her feline shoulders.  
"So things change in two thousand years. Sue me." Glancing at the  
Guardian again, she received only an astonished blink in reply. "My name is  
Lyrena," she introduced. "And you, Guardian?"  
"Um . . . Knuckles."  
"Cute." Now she approached the three of them. "Hey! Snap out of   
it!" she ordered, snapping her fingers. "You three look like you've never  
seen a mistling before!"  
"Actually - "  
"That was a joke, croc."  
"Oh. Whoops."  
"Anyway." Lyrena leaned against her sword and cracked her knuckles.  
"What's up? I couldn't have been released unless something was seriously up  
somewhere. What's the deal, Guardian?"  
Knuckles only continued to stare at the almost translucent figure   
in the lavender sweater and silver skirt who stood before him.  
"Hey, Knux!" Vector hissed. "Answer the lady! Give her the   
lowdown!"  
So Knuckles shook himself out of his reverie and gave a very rough   
account of recent happenings to the mistling.  
"And he told you Chaos would attend to itself?" Lyrena inquired.  
"Yep."  
She shook her head.  
"Things must be pretty bad then. Phrases like that don't come from  
Guardians unless something's seriously up."  
Knuckles crossed his arms.  
"Should I take offense?"  
Lyrena looked at him blankly for a moment, then broke up into   
laughter.  
"I like you," she informed him. "Michael was always *so* serious.   
Things really have changed in two thousand years!"  
"Michael?" Charmy inquired.  
"The first Guardian of the Floating Island," Knuckles explained.  
"The one the Firelance tried to connive."  
"Hold it!" Lyrena snapped. "Don't go tellin' history unless you   
know for certain what you're talkin' about, young Guardian! Let me tell you  
about Michael and that danged Firelance!"  
"How do you know what really happened?" Knuckles questioned, feeling  
a bit hurt at the blow to his teaching.  
She squared her hips.  
"I was there, duh."  
"Oh."  
"Anyway, what happened was this. Out of all our types, we who used  
the Chaos Emerald as a source of power, the most powerful had always been   
the Firelances. There were two sects of them, those who were tyrannical and  
cruel, and those who were pretty decent guys. Anyway, the two sects, of   
course, had been at war for hundreds of years already on the Realm of . . .  
on the Floating Island, because some were good and some were evil, and good  
and evil fight, because that's what they do . . . "  
  
6)---------- The Past  
  
********  
  
The Firelance known as Promise called on his powers, perhaps for the  
last time. He'd led the Firelance Army of Light for thirty years against  
his enemies, the Army of Force. Now he was preparing for one last battle.  
How he knew this would be his last, he wasn't sure, but something deep   
within him made it very clear: he would not fight ever again.  
Gazing out of a window in his tower, he could see life as usual go   
on in the mystical Realm of the Sky. The people carried on, but with the  
turn of the millenium only five years ago, he knew that this day was to mark  
the end of an era.  
There came a knock at his door.  
"Come in," he called.  
The door opened and a young mistling feline entered.  
"Promise," she said, holding her sword in front of her as a sign of  
good intention, "I bring a message from the echidna civilization."  
"The echidnas?" Promise repeated in surprise. "What do they want?"  
"They wish to speak with you in person immediately. Something very  
urgent has come up."  
"Mistling, I am preparing for battle."  
"Sir, one of them claims to have discovered the key to an Ultimate  
Form."  
Promise jumped to his feet.  
"Do you mean to tell me that an echidna has created a direct link   
with the Chaos Emerald?"  
The mistling nodded.  
"I'm coming," Promise assured her, gesturing for her to lead the   
way.  
  
Echidna civilization sat along the eastern border of the Realm. The  
people rarely had powers such as the other dwellers of the Island, but they  
didn't mind this and continued their lives, avoiding contact with the other  
mystical inhabitants.  
Now, though, everything could change.  
For thousands of years, ever since the Realm's creation, the   
different races had tried to gain the upper hand from the power source known  
as the Chaos Emerald, but no one had ever come close to the power of the  
Firelances. Still, not even they had constructed such a total link to the   
gem so as to achieve an ultimate form!  
Promise appeared in the echidna city in a quick burst of flame, and  
the mistling quickly materialized beside him.  
"Where is this echidna you speak of?" Promise demanded of her.  
"There," she said, pointing.  
And there he stood. Tall, glowing, shining a bright pink radiance   
and hovering a few inches off the ground, was the hyper-echidna.  
"Welcome, Firelance," he greeted. "My name is Michael, and I dare  
say I'm more powerful than you are now."  
Promise laughed and walked over to Michael.  
"That is quite possible, young one," he admitted. "Still, just   
because you have this power doesn't mean you can fully wield it just yet."  
"I realize that I can't," Michael confessed. "That is why I wanted  
to speak with you."  
"Oh? And what do you desire of an old Firelance?"  
"You know more about this power than I do. Your own abilities may  
not match mine now, but you know more about how to control them than I."  
"You want me to teach you how to work this power you've obtained?  
That's cheating, echidna. Every race in this Realm has the power and   
abilities they do because of their own effort and study."  
"Promise," Michael beseeched, "I would not ask this except for one  
think: the current war between you and the Army of Force. You carry on in   
your battle for domination over the Realm of the Sky, but in doing this you  
are hurting the citizens of this island. Don't you see this?"  
Promise made a pained expression.  
"Of course I do. But if we were to capitulate, the Army of Force   
would make short work of any other who opposed them. We do what we must."  
"Surely you know that I have no wish to rule the Realm with my   
power. However, I want this war to end. If you help me to wield my powers,  
I will help you win this war, and not use my powers again, save to ensure   
that my son, Steven, will inherit the gift."  
"Your offer is tempting, echidna, but I fear that this development   
has come too late."  
Michael blinked and fear hit him in the pit of his stomach.  
"What do you mean?" he asked.  
Promise sighed.  
"I mean that the deciding factor in the battle for freedom and peace  
will come into play today. After the imminent battle, the fate of the Realm  
will be decided. And I don't think our side will win."  
"Today we lose the war?!" Michael exclaimed. "But how do you know?"  
"I just know, echidna," Promise sadly stated.  
"And then what will happen? To the people of the Realm of the Sky?"  
Promise closed his eyes.  
"I have seen only one option, Michael. The gem from which we draw   
so much energy is also a portal to another world."  
"The Land of No Eternity. Yes, I know."  
"This portal may be the only way the people can be saved, my friend.  
If everyone can be moved through to the other side, than they will have   
relative safety from the Army of Force for a short time. The army will   
secure the Realm first thing, making sure that no one remains, and this will  
give our forces time to regroup on the other side of the portal and prepare  
to take on the army again, after building their own boundaries."  
"We will fall back and claim new territory?"  
"Exactly. We can no longer fight them here. Their power is too   
great, and their numbers too many. This is our only chance."  
"And the Realm?" Michael asked timidly.  
"I'm afraid it must fall to Force."  
"NO!" the echidna loudly objected. "It will not."  
"Young echidna," the Firelance calmly informed him, "only you can   
decide that. Today you became the most powerful being in the Realm. You   
are the only person who can stand against the Army of Force. Exactly how   
much of your power can you control?"  
Michael shrugged.  
"I don't know."  
Promise clapped his hands.  
"The perfect answer. In which case, Chaos is likely to attend to   
itself. Let it do so. Be ready for anything. The battle will come your   
way. Let the power guide you."  
Michael blinked.  
"Um . . . okay."  
Promise turned to the mistling who had been standing silently by all  
this time.  
"What is your name, little one?"  
"Lyrena."  
"Lyrena, no matter what happens, you are to stand with this echidna,  
and make sure he lives through this battle. His power and potential are too  
great to be allowed to pass."  
The mistling blinked at him and nodded.  
  
Promise had been wrong, as Michael and Lyrena later found out.  
The battle was waging fiercely, but it was clear that the Army of   
Light was losing fast. However, the solution of retreating to the Land of  
No Eternity was no longer an option.  
Leading the Firelance Army of Force was a Firelance known as Fate.   
  
Dark clouds covered the sky, leaving the Realm in darkness. On the  
horizon, Michael, in his regular form, could see the signs of a chaotic   
battle waging, coming closer every moment to the borders of echidna   
civilization.  
Lyrena materialized beside him.  
"Well?" he simply asked of her.  
She tossed her head frantically.  
"Fate's already trapped up the Land of No Eternity!"  
"What?!" Michael exclaimed, aghast.  
"Yes!" Lyrena confirmed, nodding. "He's been planning for this day,  
knowing that Promise would use it as a refuge! All prisoners of war, or any  
survivors at that, are being banished there, with no way to return to the  
Realm of the Sky! Unless we do something, it's promised enslavement for all  
people here!"  
"Oh my . . . " Michael held his head in his hand and turned away,  
trying to think. He did not want to allow his people to be enslaved by the  
Firelance Army, but could not think of how to prevent it. "All this power,  
Lyrena, and I don't know how to save my people! Is there nothing *you*   
could do? Even your powers are more developed than mine."  
"My friend," Lyrena sadly replied, "experience is the only advantage  
I have over you. My powers are rudimentary next to yours. If you can do   
nothing, what do you expect me to pull?"  
"Something, anything!" Michael exclaimed in despair as the battle   
reached the outskirts of the city.  
An explosion erupted next to them, its force slamming both of them   
to the ground. As they lay in an entangled heap, an option occurred to the  
mistling.  
"Michael," she said, pulling herself up off the ground, "I have an   
idea."  
  
She quickly explained to him what she had in mind, and two minutes   
later, Michael felt there was no choice but to go through with it.  
He stood still, watching as she "mistified" and vanished in the   
darkness. When she was ready, he'd know.  
Fate appeared in a fiery burst.  
"Echidna!" he greeted. "Surrender to my forces, or we will take   
your people by any means necessary!"  
"Firelance, we will not surrender to an evil force today, or any day  
in the future, as we have not done so in the past."  
*I'm ready!* came Lyrena's thought-voice.  
*Good. Let's do this, my friend.*  
Fate growled and pulled himself up to his full seven-foot height and  
was about to strike down the echidna, when a glow suddenly exuded from   
Michael, and he transfigured to an Ultimate Form.  
Startled, the Firelance reeled back.  
"You have this power - you couldn't have had it for long! You do   
not know how to use it!"  
"Yes," Michael quietly answered, "I do."  
And he did, yet he didn't.  
Lyrena had entered the emerald in her mist form, sliding through the  
pored of the gem, allowing her to guide the powers flowing in and out of it.  
While she could not divert a flow of energy enough to do harm to Fate or his  
army, she could direct the power flowing through Michael, allowing him to   
use his powers easily. Her understanding of her own abilities made her able  
to control his.  
Now, with Michael in his Ultimate Form, they were linked in the   
mind, moving through the power as one.  
Michael raised his arms and drew two circles in the air. From these  
circles opened two portals which, as they grew, merged into one. As the  
echidna held his arms up, suction from this portal clawed at Fate and his   
entire Army of Force, sucking them up into the Land of No Eternity.  
"You will pay!" Fate shouted as he vanished from the Realm. "This   
is only delaying the inevitable!"  
Then he was gone, and so was the rest of his army.  
The dark clouds cleared, and the sun shone brightly over the city.  
Michael did not move. He remained standing there, watching the few  
survivors of the Army of Light collapse with relief to the ground, exhausted  
by the fighting. And he noted that Promise was not among them.  
*Lyrena, come back.*  
*Michael, I'm not sure I can.*  
The echidna gave a start.  
*What? What do you mean? Are you hurt?*  
*No, no, but I think I'm . . . stuck, somehow.*  
*Stuck in the emerald?*  
*Yeah. Uh, do you think you could give me a hand here?*  
*I'm coming, Lyrena.*  
*Thank you.*  
  
As it was, the emerald didn't seem like it was going to release the  
mistling from its hold. For a long time, Michael tried to coax it into   
letting her go, but it made no response.  
*Am I going to be trapped in here?*  
*No. We'll think of something.*  
The answer came by accident. Michael was growing weaker in his  
Ultimate Form, and he figured he'd have more power at his disposal if he   
wasn't using so much of it up. Therefore, he reverted back into his normal  
self.  
At the exact moment that he did, mist leaked out of the emerald and  
quickly solidified into Lyrena.  
"Oh!" she exclaimed upon noticing her sudden freedom. "Thanks! I   
don't know what you just did, but it worked."  
Michael regarded the emerald thoughtfully.  
"I don't understand why, but you were released the moment I stopped  
my flow of energy. There are so many mysteries of this gem I intend to   
discover . . . "  
"But, Michael, what about those already trapped beyond the portal?   
We've got to free them!"  
"True." The echidna reached forth and tentatively touched the side  
of the Chaos Emerald. "Perhaps I can override Fate's power and open the   
sealed entrances . . . "  
"And let them out at will? Try it," Lyrena urged.  
"Okay," Michael consented, cracking his knuckles. "Here goes."  
Concentrating his energies, he opened a huge, wide portal over the  
emerald.  
"Come out!" he called into it.  
Lyrena peered into the glowing portal, overcome at the display of   
power. "Wow," she softly said to Michael.   
"Wow's the word," he replied.  
A creature then came partially through the portal, but it was not   
one of the captive residents of the Realm. It was Fate.  
"This land - this timeless Zone - belongs to my armies," he hissed   
at Michael. "Leave us."  
"Not until you release your prisoners," Michael calmly replied.  
Fate made a move as if to strike out against the echidna, but Lyrena  
quickly interceded and stopped this action by placing the blade of her sword  
against the Firelance's throat. He stared at her, and she winked, daring   
him to make another move. Wisely, he didn't.  
However, right then, the entire Army of Force came up behind Fate,  
making it clear that their intention was to return to the Realm of the Sky   
and continue their plans of conquest.  
Overcome, Michael snapped the portal closed.  
"Lyrena," he flatly stated, "we can't let the people out without   
also releasing the Army of Force."  
"So what do we do?" Lyrena inquired, walking over and placing her   
hand on his arm.  
"We find another option."  
  
Although their casualties had been fierce and they were hardly   
recovered, the Firelance Army of Light was quick to respond to Michael's   
plea for assistance.  
"So the situation has not really changed," pronounced the new leader  
of the army, named Milestone. "It's just moved. Our enemies have again   
enslaved our people, and they again need someone to free them."  
"What do you suggest?" Michael inquired.  
Milestone thought for a long time.  
"We must go in after them," he finally replied. "They will be   
guarding any and every entrance heavily, so getting anyone out is out of the  
question. However, we cannot allow so many innocents to live in imposed  
slavery. The battle will follow them through the portal."  
"But what about us, the echidnas?" Michael asked. "What can we do   
to help?"  
Smiling sadly, Milestone told him, "You, Michael, have more power at  
your disposal than any one Firelance, but even with your strength, I think   
the Firelance Army of Force could easily take you down. Your place must be  
to remain here, to guard the Realm of the Sky. There is always the chance   
that Fate and his people will return to the Realm, and you are the only one  
with the power to drive them back. For now, remain here as Guardian. When   
another is ready and able to take your place, join us in the Land of No   
Eternity."  
  
Michael and Lyrena watched silently as the Firelance Army of Light  
disappeared through the portal to the Land of No Eternity.  
After they were all gone and the portal was sealed again, he finally  
turned to her.  
"And so I have been named Guardian of the Realm of the Sky. Lyrena,  
I'm not sure what lies ahead for me."  
"Promise told me to stand with you no matter what. Whatever lies   
ahead, we'll face it together . . . Guardian."  
It was a peaceful, harmonious moment for the two old friends, who   
were now faced with a future of uncertainty. They both knew that, whatever  
happened, neither of them would have to face anything alone.  
Their silent reflections were broken suddenly by the appearance of   
Fate.  
"Echidna!" he bellowed, even before his fiery teleport disappeared.  
"The battle wages here! Seal the Chaos Chamber! There will be no more   
retreats! From now on, everything that happens will happen here - in the   
NeverZone!"  
"The NeverZone, Firelance? I'm afraid not. The portal will not be  
sealed. Our people will be free."  
Fate narrowed his glimmering eyes menacingly.  
"If you do not comply and bar the passageway between the Land of No  
Eternity and the Realm of the Sky, I will destroy all life in the Realm! I  
will return in three days!"  
Then, before Michael could even banish him, he left back for the   
"NeverZone".  
  
The next morning, Lyrena arrived at Michael's home to find him   
gazing with some interest at his reflection in a mirror.  
"What is it?" she asked by way of greeting.  
"This, Lyrena. This," he replied in a bewildered voice, turning to  
her and placing a hand on his chest.  
Where yesterday had been normal red fur, there was now a white   
crescent band, standing out against the scarlet background like a star on   
a blackened night sky.  
"What is it?" Lyrena asked, confused.  
"That's just it!" Michael answered. "I have no idea. The mark just  
appeared somehow."  
"Perhaps it's connected with your transformations yesterday?"  
"I don't know, Lyrena. It could be. In that case, maybe we should  
see what happens as Steven learns how to use his powers."  
Lyrena settled herself on his couch.  
"That's something else I'm unsure of. How are you certain that   
Steven will be able to use this power as you do?"  
"He can be taught, Lyrena. He already knows almost as much as I do,  
having been there through most of my experimentation."  
"Oh. Well, I guess we'll just have to try it and see," Lyrena   
lightly conceded. "In the meantime . . . what did you decide about Fate's  
warning?"  
Michael sighed and sat down beside her.  
"Lyrena, I honestly think he was just blowing hot air when he   
threatened to destroy all life in the Realm. It's beyond his abilities. I  
wonder, though, if he doesn't have the right idea."  
"You think maybe sealing off the doorway between here and there is  
a good idea? I don't follow."  
"Well, it's sort of a two-edged sword. If I do as he says, then not  
only will the prisoners be trapped inside, but he and his armies will be as  
well. If I don't, however, then we're constantly vulnerable to his attack,  
as he is to ours."  
"But you can fight him."  
Michael turned to regard her with surprise. She looked back at him  
with her sharp, clear blue eyes.  
"I agree with Milestone, Michael. If Fate tries to attack the   
Realm, you alone have the power to turn him back. And we must be open for  
refugees to find their way back here, back home."  
For a long moment, Michael said nothing, considering his options   
once more.  
"Okay," he then consented. "You make sense, Lyrena. I can't fight  
sense."  
"But," Lyrena hesitantly objected, "have you considered that maybe  
Fate does have the power to do as he threatens?"  
Michael shook his head.  
"That's out of the question. Not even a Firelance has that kind of  
power."  
  
As it turned out, echidna civilization was the only thing to survive  
Fate's pelting of the Realm. Other than Lyrena, the island was populated  
solely by a small city of echidnas, and they weren't very happy.  
Michael and Lyrena were walking through the city park, trying to   
give their minds a break from so many life/death-determining questions, when  
a man jumped out of the shrubberies to confront the new Guardian.  
"Why did you let them leave?" he demanded, leaping in front of them.  
"I beg your pardon?" Michael asked, startled.  
Lyrena instinctively put a hand to her sword.  
"You let the Army of Light leave us! Now we're alone! No one can  
protect us from attack!"  
"The Army left to help those imprisoned by Fate," Michael calmly  
explained. "You are not vulnerable to attack."  
"Oh, of course not!" snarled another who came out of nowhere to   
confront the pair. "You and your Ultimate Form - "  
"More powerful than a Firelance!" hooted yet another.  
Indeed, a huge swarm of people began to surround them.  
"Michael," Lyrena quietly warned, "I think we should get out of here  
before this crowd gets rash."  
"Can't just run from them. It would shatter their confidence," he   
refuted.  
"What confidence?" she inquired.  
He didn't reply to that one.  
"Are you powerful enough to take on all of us?" demanded someone   
from the crowd. "Because either you reopen that portal and bring back the  
Army of Light, or you'll have to destroy all of us to keep us from making  
you!"  
"They left of their own will," Michael informed him. "It was their  
decision to go, not mine. I couldn't stop them, nor could I now order them  
to return here."  
"Why not, if you're so much stronger than they are?!"  
A large uprising of taunts and jeers rose from the crowd. Lyrena,  
already on edge, drew out her sword.  
"Get back!" she shouted into the suddenly hushed crowd. "Michael   
wouldn't hurt you because he cares about you too much, but that doesn't mean  
I won't slice your throats if you take one step towards us!"  
Everyone took a step back, not wanting to rile a mistling.  
"Lyrena," Michael said, putting one of his hands over hers and   
pushing her sword down from a threatening position. "Don't blame them.   
They're just scared. They have a right to be. Violence won't solve this  
situation. We all need to just stop and think."  
"I'M THROUGH THINKING!!!!" came an insane scream from the retreating  
crowd.  
Before Lyrena could even twitch for her weapon, laserfire sliced the  
air.  
Michael gave a yelp and crumbled to the ground.  
"Michael!!" Lyrena exclaimed, dropping her sword mindlessly to the  
ground and catching him. She knelt down and cradled him in her lap, the   
laserwound smoking in his chest. "Michael . . . no, you can't die."  
"No . . . Lyrena . . . Steven . . . teach him . . . "  
She gripped his hands and held him tightly to her.  
"Anything, anything!" she sobbed. "Oh, Michael, my dearest friend,  
you know how I love you . . . "  
His eyes as he looked into hers were filled with understanding and  
affection, but his words died on his lips.  
As he died in her arms.  
"No, no, no - "  
Tears flowed freely from her as she clung to his body and looked   
over the shocked crowd.  
"IDIOTS!!!" she yelled in a breaking voice. "He was the only one   
who could have saved you . . . now you're all going to BURN! BURN FOR   
ETERNITY IN THE UNDERWORLD!!!! - oh Michael . . . oh Michael . . . "  
Still holding him tightly, she dropped her face to his still chest   
and wept uncontrollably.  
  
The period of mourning for a loved one was ten days. These ten days  
were to be spent together for Lyrena and Steven, Michael's son, whom she had   
taken upon herself to finish raising. Neither of them was exactly sure what to   
do now. The Guardian's passing left a huge gap not only in their hearts,   
but in their plans.  
Plans were the farthest things from their minds, however, as they  
endured the first two days without much thought at all.  
It was on the second day after the tragedy that Lyrena was flung in  
the middle of the situation.  
As evening fell on that second day, the candle-lit prayers of the   
heartbroken mistling were disrupted by a fiery blast, and Fate appeared   
before her.  
"Mistling," he greeted in a harsh voice. "Where is this alleged  
'Guardian of the Realm'?"  
Lyrena stared right through him, not dignifying the Firelance's   
demand with a comment.  
Fate didn't like this, however.  
"Impudent little one . . . " he snarled, taking a step toward her.  
Before he could finish his threat, the mistling sprang to her feet   
and, firing a blast of chaotic energy she didn't know she possessed, she  
struck him down to the ground and pinned him there, the point of her sword  
pressed firmly at his heart.  
The Firelance stared up at his captor with astonishment.  
"Leave this house," she growled. "You defile his memory with your  
filthy presence."  
Fate vanished in a sudden puff of flame and reappeared behind her,  
lashing at her with his tail-blade. Startled by his disappearance, Lyrena  
mistified just in time to keep from being sliced in two. Reforming, she   
stood straight in front of him, keeping a firm grip on her weapon, but   
making no move to attack.  
"He is dead?" Fate demanded.  
"Yes. Now leave us."  
"He has a son."  
No comment from the mistling.  
"His son will have inherited the Guardian's abilities."  
Still no comment.  
"Bring him here."  
Eyes blazing, Lyrena again struck him down.  
"Dang you!" Fate sputtered from the floor. "How are you doing that?  
You're only a mistling!"  
"I studied alongside the Guardian. You will leave this house, and   
you will never again seek Steven or any of the echidna people, and one day,  
all our people will be free from your grip and you will never show your face  
in the Realm of the Sky again!"  
"Misting, you are a dreamer. Remember my threat."  
And in another flame, he vanished.  
  
The next day began with unusual weather.  
"I've never seen storms like this!" a neighbor said to Lyrena and  
Steven as they all stood outside watching the clouds.  
The winds were higher than they ever had been in the history of the  
Realm, and the rainfall was coming harder and harder.  
After a few minutes spent observing the storm, the people of the   
city all hurried indoors, as the drops were growing dangerous.  
"Stay here," Lyrena told Steven. "I've gotta check something."  
She mistified and left the house, going to the Chaos Chamber. There  
she found the answer she'd been dreading: the strange storms covering the  
planet were diverting the course of the island, sending it stumbling to  
goodness only knew where.  
Uncertain what she should do, she returned to echidna civilization.  
"Well?" Steven asked her upon her return.  
"The Realm's being blown off course," she replied, "and the whole  
planet is being pelted with these strange storms."  
"While you were gone a report came over the radio," the young   
echidna told her. "Damage to some buildings is so great that many have  
already collapsed."  
Lyrena sat down heavily on the couch.  
*The very couch,* she realized, *where Michael and I were discussing  
Steven's possible training two days ago.*  
"Has anyone been hurt?" she weakly inquired.  
"Yeah, lots. And people are being killed."  
"Crud. C'mon, Steven, I think we should get underground in case it  
comes to that here."  
  
As the day drew on, the weather continued to steady gain intensity.  
By noon, thousands across the planet had been reported dead.  
Lyrena was wracking her brain.  
"Fate said he would wipe out all life on the island . . . could he  
be responsible for this?" she wondered aloud.  
Steven shrugged.  
"Father said a Firelance's chaos powers aren't strong enough to do  
something of such a magnitude."  
"Maybe not . . . but that's their powers in general. But - " Lyrena  
clamped her hands to her head " - they have total mastery over temperature  
and motion!"  
"So?" Steven reasoned. "That's temperature, not weather."  
"That doesn't mean anything, Steven. With their abilities, they  
could manipulate the temperature in the upper atmosphere to cause such   
storms as these - they wouldn't be able to restrict it to the Realm, though,  
without using excessive energy . . . so they decided to take it out on the  
whole planet!"  
For a long moment the two of them hung out silently, considering the  
possibilities open to them.  
"Lyrena," Steven said after that long moment, "I couldn't stop them.  
Even if I knew how, could I?"  
"I don't know."  
"Then what can I do but listen to Fate before the planet is   
destroyed? I've gotta do as the Firelance says."  
Lyrena bit her lip.  
"Do you know how?"  
Steven spun around on a heel and faced opposite her.  
"No," he replied in a quavering voice.  
The mistling walked over to him.  
"Then wait," she instructed, putting her arms around him. "Fate   
will return to give you one last chance. It's the way of the Firelance."  
Steven buried his scared face in her sweater.  
"Yes, mother."  
  
The next morning, Lyrena and Steven came above ground into the   
bright, unhindered sunlight. It would have been a beautiful day . . . if   
not for the shambles of debris that had been a city yesterday. Carefully  
pushing feeling behind them, they journeyed to the center of the island.  
To the Chaos Chamber.  
As Lyrena had predicted, Fate was there, waiting for them.  
"Seal the Chamber," he ordered upon their arrival. "Let no one but  
yourself enter . . . or leave."  
"Why?" Steven sullenly inquired.  
"The Land of No Eternity belongs to us. But when we return to claim  
for ourselves once again the Realm of the Sky, it must still stand. You   
have been named Guardian of the Realm by our enemies. So guard your Realm   
while you can. One day, when we are ready to return, we will do so."  
"I can't seal the Chamber."  
"Of course you can, you fool. Just do it."  
Steven looked Fate in the eye and was about to retort rudely, but  
something he saw in the Firelance's eyes made him stop. After meeting his  
glare for a moment, the young Guardian snapped his head forward.  
The Chaos Emerald issued a sudden burst of light, and Fate melted   
away, still trying to figure out what had happened.  
A white crescent ring appeared on Steven's chest.  
  
Three years after Steven sealed the Chamber, he was married.  
  
One year later, he and his spouse bore a son, whom they named Jacob.  
  
Half a year after Jacob's birth, Steven made his strange request to  
Lyrena, who had continued to act as a mother to the Guardian whenever he   
needed one, out of love for both him and his father.  
"Lyrena, I must ask something of you that I'm not sure you'll like."  
"Tell me what it is and I'll tell you if I like it."  
Strangely enough, they were carrying on this conversation in the  
rebuilt city park while eating ice cream sundaes.  
"Once Jacob is old enough, I'm going to leave through the portal. I  
don't think I'm going to stay to teach him how to use the majority of his  
powers, though."  
"I don't follow."  
"The other races would teach their children how to use their Chaos  
Powers. It was the way of things. But with power such as it is at our   
disposal, I don't feel it's right to explain the gift fully to him. Once he  
is able to comprehend his position and abilities, I will leave him to   
develop those abilities in his own way. If I'm right, this will, in the   
long run, be more beneficial than to spend the time teaching him my ways."  
"So because everyone's style of nurturing chaotic abilities is a bit  
different from everyone else's, you think it would be better for him if you  
left him alone to develop his powers his own way. I follow. I can't say it  
makes me particularly happy, but I follow."  
"That's where you come into this."  
"I was afraid of that."  
"Listen, mother. I intend to implement this as the way of things.  
As long as the Realm remains free, there will be a Guardian. But we need a  
safeguard: something or someone to be called upon if something goes wrong."  
"If a future Guardian is unable to nurture their abilities   
sufficiently, you need someone to step in."  
"Only to be called on in an extreme emergency."  
"And this concerns me how? Not that I haven't guessed . . . "  
"No doubt you have. Will you be this someone?"  
Lyrena glared at him, unsure of how to react to this request.  
"I'm not sure. How would it be done? I'm not immortal, Steven."  
Steven produced from the bag he'd been carrying a stone which, at   
sight, caused Lyrena to almost go into spasms.  
"For goodness sake, put that thing away!!!" she hissed. "Where did  
you get that?!" she demanded after he'd pocketed the rock.  
"A Zone."  
"A Zone? What the heck do you mean by that?"  
"Just what I said. I got fifty power rings and nabbed another Chaos   
Emerald from a Zone."  
"What does it have to do with any of this?"  
"You're a mistling. You can enter an emerald. In fact, you were the first to ever do so."  
Lyrena blinked.  
"Steven, are you saying you want me to go inside that thing and   
loiter until some Guardian in the undetermined future blows it? You know I  
couldn't release myself. What if something goes wrong?"  
"Chaos will attend to itself, mother."  
Blinking repeatedly, Lyrena thought.  
"Okay," she then consented. "You make sense, Steven. I can't fight   
sense."  
  
7)---------- More Confrontations  
  
********  
  
"That's how it happened," Lyrena lightly finished. "So I sat around  
in that emerald for two-thousand years until it was made possible for me to  
be released. And since I'm here, there must be a good reason."  
An awkward silence fell over the Chaos Chamber. Everyone was still  
digesting the story, except for the mistling, who was still digesting having  
spent two-thousand years in a rock.  
"Mistling," Knuckles finally said, "I think we need to talk. In   
private." He turned to Vector and Charmy who gestured a go-ahead. They'd  
stay and guard the joint while Knux chatted out history with a woman who'd  
known his great-great-great etc. grandfather.  
"Fine," she consented easily, turning and leaving the Chamber.  
  
"Okay, Lyrena," Knuckles pointedly stated as they walked along the  
edge of the Floating Island. "I get where you're coming from, and I get   
your purpose here, but there's something I've gotta make clear."  
"Shoot."  
"Okay. This is a very different time from the one you left. All   
these people trapped in the NeverZone are virtually forgotten. Echidna   
Civilization is more than virtually restricted to memory, and eventually  
will also fade. Firelance's appear here and there, but it's very rare that  
anyone with Chaos Powers shows their face on this planet. No one has more  
than a vague perception of the Chaos Emerald itself, and only two people   
living now, other than you, I suppose, have any clue how to draw energy from  
it."  
"What, are you the last echidna in the Re - on the Floating Island?"  
"I'm the last echidna on the Floating Island and the planet Mobius."  
"O-oh. How did that happen?"  
"I don't know. It's just been that way my whole life. Maybe that's  
why you're here, because after me, there won't be any more Guardians, and   
unless Sonic pulls something, there won't be any Chaos Warriors left period.  
But just let me make it clear that your war is not my priority."  
Lyrena raised her eyebrows.  
"Protecting the Realm and striving for the freedom of its people is  
the priority of a Guardian. It's what the very title means."  
"Maybe then. Maybe all the way up to my father. Maybe all the way  
up till last night. But not anymore."  
"I'm afraid I don't follow your thinking, Guardian."  
"Look," Knuckles snapped, stopping in his tracks and turning to   
regard her head on. "All through my childhood, I was told that my first  
priority must always be to the Floating Island. I have to protect the   
Island at any and or all costs. Why - because that's the duty of the   
Guardian, always has been, always would be, and I had the joy of being born  
a Guardian. But it just hit me that I'm the last one. And do you know   
what?"  
"Sorry, no I don't."  
"That little revelation changed everything for me."  
"And why?"  
"Why? Why was I guarding the Island in the first place? To keep it  
safe for the future. To guard the Island for its people both now and in   
generations to come. Only now I finally realize that there is no future for  
the Floating Island! When I die, the last of the Guardians will be gone.   
According to your story, then Fate and his army will come back through the  
portal and reclaim it for his own. According to my own experience, Robotnik  
or some other tyrant from the surface is gonna come along and swipe the   
emerald to use as an energy source, and who's gonna be able to stop them?  
Basically, when I die, so does the Floating Island. So why should I   
continue placing the well-being of this hunk of earth and its Chaos Emerald  
over that of the rest of the planet? The people on the surface of Mobius,  
they're the future of our world, not us! They're who must be protected, not  
this Island!"  
"So instead of restricting your loyalties to this Island and its  
people, you're upgrading to a loyalty to life in general? Intriguing. Do  
you actually think you'd get away with it?"  
"Only one way to find out." Knuckles shrugged and kicked a small   
stone off the Island, watching as it fell thousands of feet to the ocean  
below. "Sorry. I guess this is a shock to you, what with coming from back  
when the priorities were being set in stone."  
"On the contrary, Guardian. I agree. All life must be looked out  
for."  
"And what if one had to be sacrificed for the other? The Island or  
the Surface?"  
Lyrena regarded him with her cool blue eyes.  
"Knuckles, I've worked closely with two Guardians in my time. Each  
of them would've given you a different answer to that question. The gist of  
it is: you're the Guardian. I'm here to help you. Whatever decision you   
make, Promise told me to stand with Michael no matter what. And Michael  
resides within you. There is another matter I suggest you consider,   
however."  
"And that is?"  
"As for you being the last Guardian . . . just let Chaos attend to  
itself."  
Knuckles groaned.  
"Lyrena, that one was totally uncalled for."  
"Yeah, it was, wasn't it? All I can say is this: much as I pick on  
Michael for being so serious in his nature, don't doubt for a minute how  
much I respected and cared about that man. We mocked each other at times.  
It's how we were. He was too serious and I was too hopeful. Still, you're  
his legacy. I just hope you do proud his memory."  
Knuckles returned her clear gaze, totally serious.  
"So do I."  
  
Let's leave things where they are on the Floating Island, or the  
Realm of the Sky, or whatever you want to call it, and see what happened in  
Robotropolis after Mecha Sonic returned with Espio.  
Repairs had been made to the severely-damaged mecha-robian, and now  
he stood with Mecha, waiting to speak with Robotnik.  
"You already talked to him. bzeep Is he angry with my failure?  
I didn't destroy the Guardian as he asked."  
"Don't worry so much," Mecha assured him. "You have done better  
than you think."  
"Have I?"  
"Just be patient. Allow the master to explain."  
Right then, they were admitted to the still-singed throne room. The  
damage from Sonic and Knuckles' excursion was still evident, but the palace  
remained operational for the most part.  
"Ah, Espio," Robotnik greeted. "Mecha Sonic has spoken highly of  
your performance."  
Startled, Espio tossed a glance to Mecha, who stood beside him and  
made no response.  
"Master," Espio hesitantly explained, "I failed my first mission."  
Robotnik waved his hands in the air.  
"It happens. Actually, you didn't fail. You passed with flying  
colors."  
The mecha-robian's red eyes paled and squinted.  
"I don't understand."  
"We didn't expect you to take down Knuckles single-handedly. Such a  
think would be nearly impossible. Single-handedly. Your true mission was a  
test of loyalty. Whether or not you would remain true to us when faced  
against your former friends and comrades. Even when faced with possible  
execution, you remained loyal only to me. You passed your test,  
mecha-robian."  
"Oh . . . zzt thank you, master."  
"Now that your position has been established," Robotnik continued,  
leaning forward to better address his two metal servants, "it is time for  
both of you to learn the next phase of our plan. How I intend to take over  
the Floating Island . . . and the rest of Mobius."  
  
"What do you think of the plan?" Mecha inquired of Espio as they  
later strode through the streets of Robotropolis, doing little other than  
discussing various things. Robot small-talk, if you will.  
Espio shrugged.  
"I don't see how it could fail. The Floating Island could never  
stand against the attack. And once we have possession of the Chaos Emerald,  
no one on Mobius could possibly stand in the way of Robotnik's plans."  
Mecha's eyes glowed darkly.  
"Good. I don't like to lose. And we lose too much."  
"beep If the master is not, are *you* disappointed with my  
performance on the Floating Island?"  
"No. I agree with Dr. Robotnik. It proves where you stand with us.  
And besides, I have yet to actually defeat the Guardian myself. This was  
your first battle. You will learn. I will teach you."  
  
While Mecha took Espio under his wing, Knuckles considered the  
advantages and otherwise of having the mistling living on the Floating  
Island. Surely there was good she could do for them, things she could teach  
him. During the meanwhile, however, he was deliberating over whether or not  
she could be of any help in the situation with Espio.  
After all, the power to revert to a mist form - or mistify - would  
definitely be a plus, no matter what the plan turned out to be. Until he  
came up with a plan, though, there was little any amount of power could do  
to help.  
He sighed and decided he felt like talking to the mistling a bit  
more. For all the lecture he'd given her, he wanted to hear more about the  
time she'd left. His origins. For whatever reason, he just wanted to hear  
more. And he had a few questions.  
  
Lyrena was wandering through one of the ancient ruins along the  
coast of the Island. What was left of ancient echidna civilization.  
"I thought I'd find you here," Knuckles softly commented, coming up  
behind her.  
She made no move of surprise, but looked up at him and pursed her  
lips. Then she grabbed his wrist.  
"Come with me. There's something I want to show you."  
"Euh . . . okay," he stammered, jostling along behind her and in no  
position to argue.  
They journeyed through what had once been a great city, the city  
she'd lived in for so many years as a young mistling. She maneuvered  
herself through the overgrowth in such a way that Knuckles knew she was  
still following the old locations of streets and buildings; probably the  
only way she could be sure of finding what she was looking for in this ruin.  
Finally, they stopped rushing along and she instantly plopped down  
to her knees and began tugging away at two-thousand years' worth of residue  
and erosion. Knuckles watched her, fascinated, as she clawed through plants  
and dirt and a few rocks in her search.  
"What are you looking for?" he finally asked.  
"There!" she exclaimed, throwing up her hands and climbing back to  
her feet. "Guardian," she then said in a gentler, more reverent tone,  
"Knuckles. This is the site of Michael's grave."  
Then she just stood there, staring at the marker she'd uncovered, as  
if she wanted to say more but couldn't come up with the words.  
Knuckles was glad she didn't. Something swept over him, being here,  
now, after hearing the mistling's story of how all this came about. Now he  
was here, somehow feeling united with these two people who had saved his  
people. The first Guardian. The one who had started everything.  
  
Michael Echidna  
2976 - 3009  
Guardian of the Realm of the Sky  
For now, forever  
  
The words were eroded by the years, and the writing styles were  
different then than they are now, but Knuckles still could understand what  
it said.  
Kneeling down and leaning forward, he reached out and gently touched  
the grave marker, feeling almost intrusive.  
"For now, forever," he breathed.  
Lyrena knelt down beside him.  
"For now, forever," she repeated in a soft voice filled with such an  
abundance of love and sadness that Knuckles snapped out of his own reverie  
to observe her in hers.  
She turned to him with tear-filled eyes.  
"His loyalty was to whoever needed it, Knuckles. His priority was  
freedom for all people who deserved it. Steven, bless his heart, could  
never understand that. But you . . . I think you can."  
Knuckles suddenly found himself unable to meet her eyes.  
"You knew him," he whispered. "Would you tell me more about him?"  
Lyrena smiled.  
"He was too serious." She gave a low laugh. "And I was too  
hopeful. I suppose we made the perfect pair. Balanced each other  
perfectly." After a deep sigh, she continued in a more serious tone. "You  
may rest assured that his enemies slept uneasily at night. Even before he  
developed his powers, he was more than a match for any echidna. I, on the  
other hand, was privileged to be his friend. Oh, Knuckles, never in the  
history of either of our races could there ever have been found a better,  
truer friend than Michael. It was such an honor, even then, even though  
most of my people looked upon your people in a less than favorable light."  
"From your story . . . Steven actually looked upon you as a mother.  
Exactly how close *were* you to Michael?"  
"Do you mean were we romantically involved? Not even for a moment,  
Knuckles. We knew better. Our relationship was one we both treasured far  
too much to be soiled in such a manner. But I did help him raise Steven,  
ever since his wife died when the boy was only four."  
"How did you meet?"  
"Who, Michael and I?" The mistling's bright peal of laughter filled  
the silent graveyard. "That, my friend, is a very long story, best saved  
for another day." She threw a mischievous glance to the grave, as if  
assuring Michael that their secret was still safe.  
In spite of himself, Knuckles also smiled. Despite his natural  
distrust for any newcomer to the Island, he found himself liking this  
mistling. As a matter of fact, he liked her a lot.  
"But tell me Knuckles," she now said, "what was it that dragged you  
out here to talk to me about? Surely it wasn't to hear another of my long  
stories?"  
"Unfortunately, no. But don't think I won't come back to you for  
that later. I actually had a few technical questions for you."  
She spread her hands.  
"I'm here to help, Knuckles."  
"Steven sealed the Chaos Chamber so that no one except a Guardian  
could leave or enter."  
"Yes."  
"Why is that no longer in effect?"  
Lyrena rolled from her knees to a sitting position, sighing in  
puzzlement.  
"That's a question I've been mulling over ever since I got here, my  
friend. And I'm forced to admit that I don't know. Something just must've  
happened to the situation somewhere between my time and yours."  
"Oh."  
Knuckles also sat down, thinking but not speaking.  
"Was there something else?" Lyrena inquired patiently.  
"Hmm. I was just wondering . . . do you know how to open the Never-  
Zone Portal?"  
Her ears flickered at the question, and she bit her lip  
thoughtfully.  
"In theory, yes," she slowly replied. "To actually do it, though,  
is beyond the capabilities of a mistling."  
Knuckles sighed.  
"I guess I'm just worried that the need will arise, and I won't know  
how to do it. If that's the case, what should I do?"  
Turning to him with a grin, she relayed the answer to him without  
even saying it.  
"Chaos will attend to itself, my young Guardian. It has before, and  
always will. It allowed Steven to seal the Chaos Chamber, it allowed me to,  
at one time, pummel Fate to the floor, and it taught you to fly, yesterday.   
When you work with Chaos Powers the way we do, you just have to take it   
for granted that some things will just automatically work out."  
The echidna grimaced.  
"Jeez. I must make a pretty crummy Chaos Warrior. You see, I have  
this habit of figuring out how to do something before I go and do it . . . maybe   
it's just a phase."  
"I'm not sure, but I think that was a sarcastic remark."  
"What makes you say that?"  
  
"Scans of the Floating Island are showing unusual amounts of energy  
at work," Robotnik informed his two mecha-warriors. "The plan must go  
smoothly. I want to know about any changes that go on up there. You two  
must go back to the Island and see what's going on."  
"As you wish, master," Mecha conceded, bowing and backing out of the  
door.  
Espio said nothing, but followed his teacher's example as he left.  
  
"Back to your old turf once again," Mecha dryly remarked as he and  
Espio rocketed through the wind en route to the Floating Island.  
"Old," Espio confirmed. "Former."  
As he flew along, Mecha turned to regard the mecha-robian.  
"Your design intrigues me. You have all your old memories, but also  
have proper programming. Do you ever regret leaving your old life?"  
"bzeep Not at all. I find this life adequate in every way. My  
former existence no longer holds any appeal for me."  
"And your old friends? zzzt Do they cause no disturbance at  
all in your mind?"  
"None. crackle I have no need of them. They were a  
convenience, no more, and now are nothing."  
"Does your memory say they were merely a convenience?"  
"No . . . but I now realize that they were."  
"Ah."  
Their conversation ended there, for that was when they reached their  
destination: the Floating Island.  
"Move in," Mecha ordered.  
Nodding acknowledgement, Espio disappeared. It was a trait from his  
former life that had carried into this one, and one that came in very handy.  
The Guardian would know that they'd arrived, but this would give them one  
element of surprise, if no other.  
Once he was gone, Mecha settled in position: standing still in the  
center of the Marble Garden, waiting.  
  
Knuckles was just concluding is guard shift of the Chamber, and was  
waiting for Charmy to come and take over. Still, he couldn't really blame  
him for being late. The day before, Charmy and Vector had hung out in there  
for considerably longer than they had to, giving him a chance to assess the  
situation with Lyrena.  
And of course, there was Mighty. He was okay, but still too shaky  
to fight. At the moment, he was still resting in his home.  
As the Guardian waited, the Emerald once again dimmed to its deep,  
formidable shade of red, signaling the arrival of the Mechas.  
Charmy appeared at that moment, just as Knuckles was deliberating  
over what to do.  
"Good, you're here. Now stay here - we have an intruder!" he  
hastily to the bee as he charged out.  
  
Mecha hadn't been waiting for very long before the Guardian made his  
appearance.  
When he did make his appearance, it was with the usual zip the  
Guardian seemed to enjoy: shooting out of a tree and knocking him to the  
ground.  
"Good to see you again as well, Guardian," Mecha lightly greeted,  
smoothly regaining his footing.  
"Go die or something," Knuckles sneered. "You've got a lot of nerve  
to show your ugly metallic face on this Island after what you've done - "  
"What have I done?"  
" - what you did to Espio!!"  
"Espio, echidna? Espio is quite happy the way he is now. Don't you  
want your friends to be happy?"  
Before Mecha could move to dodge the blow, the echidna had slammed  
him against the ground.  
"Not happiness that comes through enslavement!!" he bellowed.  
Sweeping his arms apart in one powerful gesture, Mecha flung the  
Guardian away from him and jumped lightly back to his feet.  
"I'm here for one reason only, Guardian, and strangely enough, it's  
not to destroy you."  
"Oh, I feel neglected," Knuckles sourly responded, keeping a  
distance from the mecha.  
Mecha Sonic grinned.  
"Really? You look worse than neglected, echidna. I daresay, is  
that a SWATbot laserfire wound? And you look almost as if you'd tangled  
with a mecha-robian while you were at it!"  
"Oh, very funny. I'm still in good enough condition to take you  
down in three different ways at once, Mecha."  
"Much as I'd love to take you up on that, I must inquire as to the  
strange energy fluctuations that have been recently coming from this most  
beautiful Island."  
"I don't know what you're talking about."  
"Chaos Energy, Guardian, is something we monitor very closely. It's  
important to us - of course we're preparing for the rapidly approaching day  
when this Island's emerald will be ours, but until then, where is this new  
energy coming from?"  
"Mecha Sonic, I suggest you remove yourself from my Island before  
there's not enough of you left to fly home."  
"Is that a threat, echidna? crackle Priority four, echidna?"  
"No, Mecha, it's not a threat. It's a promise."  
And he seemed ready to make good that promise, but then both of them  
brought their heads around sharp to the same direction: Mecha responding to  
an electronic distress signal, and Knuckles responding to the Chaos Emerald  
in a fearful state.  
The combatants exchanged severe glances and both took off for the  
Chaos Chamber.  
  
As Mecha Sonic had awaited Knuckles' arrival, Espio went to head him  
off and left for the Chaos Chamber invisibly. When he arrived, he found it  
unguarded except for the honeybee known as Charmy.  
His databanks said he was a member of the Chaotix.  
His memory said he was a tough adversary, in spite of his diminutive  
stature.  
His eyes said he was the only one guarding the Chaos Chamber.  
Still, his mission was not to make an attempt to steal the emerald,  
nor to take on one of the Chaotix. His last mission had ended up in a big  
enough shamble when he tried to take on too much. So he did as he'd been  
instructed and waited silently and invisibly in the Chamber, waiting to  
learn something of importance.  
For a few minutes, nothing happened. Then a strange mist entered  
the Chamber.  
Charmy looked up at it.  
"What's going on, anyway?" he inquired of the air.  
"There are intruders on the Island," said the mist, as it slowly  
formed into a feline shape.  
"Yeah, I gathered that much, but why did the emerald turn white?"  
Espio caught his breath almost audibly.  
*A mistling!* he realized. *There's a mistling on the Floating  
Island! No wonder the energy readings have been so far up!*  
The mistling closely examined the gem.  
"For it to be white signals danger - danger more severe than I think  
we realize," was her troubled reply to the question. "I wonder . . . "  
She put both hands on the stone and leaned forward, eyes closed in  
concentration.  
"Two are here," she murmured to the bee, who was watching with  
extreme interest. "One's in the Marble Garden with Knuckles . . . the other  
is . . . is . . . "  
Her eyes snapped open and she lurched away from the emerald.  
"What?" Charmy asked, startled. "Where?"  
The mistling whirled to look at him for a moment, then mistified in  
the blink of an eye. And she began to move.  
Espio realized too late that she was moving toward him.  
Even when he did, she was already upon him, seeping inside of him  
in her mist form.  
"No!" he shouted, becoming visible.  
Charmy blinked in shocked surprise at his appearance.  
"Get out of me!!" Espio yelled, thrashing about. "Get out of me!!"  
  
Mecha arrived on a scene a moment before Knuckles did, being aided  
by his rocket-boosters. He hit the ground with precision and took in the  
scene.  
Espio was still thrashing and shouting, and no sense could be made  
from his words, but his signal was still transmitting.  
Mistling! Mistling! Mistling! She's in me!  
Jumping forward, Mecha grabbed tightly onto Espio and shook him  
roughly.  
"Make sense!" he ordered. "What's the matter with you?!"  
"Get her out! Get her out! Mecha, get her out of me!!" was the  
only response the metallic chameleon could give.  
Knuckles landed in the Chamber.  
"Charmy, what's going on?!"  
"Lyrena just went inside of him! And he went crazy!"  
"Dang."  
The two Mobians stood and watched the scene, unable to intervene  
between the mecha-robian and the mistling, not like they would if they  
could. Mecha, on the other hand, was torked off.  
"What's BZZT! happening?!" he snapped.  
The Guardian crossed his arms.  
"You may be in the process of losing your little sidekick."  
Alarmed, Mecha turned back to Espio, who gave one last convulsion  
and collapsed on the floor. He took a step towards him, but the mecha-  
robian snapped back a few feet, the sinister red gone from his eyes. Now  
his eyes were blue once again.  
"Leave, Mecha," was all he said.  
Mecha looked at him for a long moment. Then he nodded, pivoted, and  
shot out of the Chamber and off and away from the Island without so much as  
acknowledging Knuckles or Charmy.  
  
Knuckles tentatively took a step towards Espio.  
"Stay back!" the metallic chameleon snapped.  
Startled, Knuckles instantly moved back.  
"I bzzt don't know . . . crackle why . . . "  
For a moment, Knuckles said nothing. Then, in a soft voice, he  
called out, "Lyrena?"  
From the mecha-robian exuded a thick mist, which quickly formed up  
into the mistling.  
"Is he all right?"  
She gave a slight nod.  
"He's still confused. I put his organic mind back in control."  
Giving a slight nod of his own, the echidna said simply, "Thank you,  
Lyrena."  
"I'm here to serve."  
"Espio," Knuckles said, again taking a small step closer to the  
cowering, trembling mecha-robian. "It's all right. We're your friends."  
"Ha! Ha! Do you hear me laughing, Knuckles? Huh?! DO YOU HEAR ME  
LAUGHING?!?!?! - why am I laughing?"  
Another step closer.  
"You're just a little confused, pal. But you're you again. You're  
Espio the Chameleon, one of the Chaotix."  
Espio ignited his rocket pack and shot up into the air in front of  
Knuckles.  
"Am I? Do I look like me to you?! I don't know WHAT I am!!!"  
"What doesn't matter," Knuckles said in a gentle voice.  
"Then who? Who am I? Frankly, I'm not so sure of that, either."  
"You - "  
"Lay off, would you?! I need to think!!!"  
"Think, then, but calm down first, before you hurt yourself!"  
"Oh please. Oh please. This is so pathetic - so CHEESY - will  
someone please tell me what's going on? I feel like a reject from a bad  
daytime drama."  
Knuckles breathed a sigh of relief. That was a comment more likely  
to come from Espio than a metallic counterpart.  
"Come back to the ground, and we'll tell you exactly what's going  
on, Espio."  
Espio looked warily at the Guardian.  
"How do I know I can trust you?" he whispered.  
Looking into his eyes steadily, Knuckles replied,  
"Because we're your friends."  
For a moment, Espio did nothing except return the stare. Then he  
slowly settled back down to the ground.  
Charmy, who had been sitting in the background throughout  
the confrontation, now stepped forward also to welcome back the fourth  
member of the Chaotix.  
Lyrena nudged Knuckles' arm.  
"Do you want me to get the others?" she inquired quietly.  
"Y-yeah. Good idea. Vector and Mighty."  
"Right. I'll be back."  
And she disappeared.  
  
Mecha stood alone in the palace, waiting to face Robotnik.  
The doctor was facing away from him, refusing to acknowledge the  
presence of the mecha for quite some time. Then he finally turned and asked  
curtly, "Where is Espio?"  
Slowly blinking his deep red eyes, Mecha Sonic simply replied,  
"Gone."  
Robotnik glowered menacingly at the mecha, but the robot made no  
response except to continue staring forward with his unchanging, unfeeling  
red eyes.  
Or maybe they weren't so unfeeling after all.  
"Did you get the necessary information?" the doctor then asked in a  
light tone, as if having forgotten the mecha-robian had ever existed.  
Tilting his head slightly, Mecha replied, "There is someone new on  
the Island. A female of some sort. Espio referred to her as a mistling,  
and said she'd gone inside of him. The bee known as Charmy also said she'd  
somehow gotten within him, and referred to her by the name of Lyrena."  
"And she is the source of this new energy?"  
"I believe so."  
"Well then, our little misting must have an accident before she  
causes any more trouble." Robotnik raised an eyebrow at Mecha. "Hopefully  
she will not . . . get inside . . . of you as well."  
"Never, master, I have no prior memories to be called upon."  
  
That night, Espio was finally feeling more like his old self again,  
and the other Chaotix, Knuckles, and the mistling were sitting with him down  
in the Chaos Chamber.  
"And that's pretty much all that's happened," Knuckles concluded,  
having been in the process of filling in the former chameleon in on what had  
transpired during his absence.  
"Well well," was the only response the mecha-robian could come up  
with on such short notice.  
"So, uh, what's the word in Robotropolis?" Vector nonchalantly  
posed. "Anything goin' on we might wanna know about?"  
Espio blinked blankly at him, then gasped and jumped to his feet.  
"What is it?!" Knuckles demanded, startled into jumping up himself.  
"I just remembered - Robotnik's plan to conquer the Floating Island!  
He's got - he's got - " Flailing his fingers helplessly in the air for a  
moment, he turned to Knuckles in a flustered state. "Knux, he's got a  
thousand mechas, built and operational. They've not yet been activated, but  
are standing by. At the flick of a button, all thousand of 'em are gonna  
move out to the Floating Island . . . do you think we could take on a  
thousand mechas, Knux? Do you?"  
Knuckles blinked, his mouth hanging open in shock.  
"U-uhhh . . . "  
Glancing over his shoulder, he caught the horrified expressions of  
the others.  
*Dang. Gotta be strong. Gotta be strong, so they can be strong,  
so we'll have a chance . . . so we don't all give in right away . . . *  
"Espio, my friend, I'm sure we'll find a way," the Guardian firmly  
stated. "Let Chaos attend to itself."  



	3. Duties

  
)---------- Duties  
part three of "For Now, Forever"  
  
written by Anna-mathe  
inspired by one of NetRaptor's lead-ins  
Lyrics by Savatage  
  
In Robotropolis, Mecha was coming to terms with Espio's abandonment.  
Impassive and uncaring as he was supposed to be, the mecha had taken a fond  
liking to the mecha-robian in the short time he'd been with them, and now  
Mecha Sonic rather resented his betrayal.  
*Why I am letting this get me down, I'm not sure. I've never needed  
a companion before.*  
Tweaking a few switched on an internal control panel, he began the  
shutdown process to replenish his energy supplies. The last few battles had  
left him feeling drained.  
His thoughts continued as his systems deactivated, sending him to a   
robotic slumber.  
*I am Mecha Sonic. Programmed to lead Doctor Robotnik's armies to  
victory over all Mobius. No one is equal to me. I need no one. No family,  
no friends. They are merely a convenience.*  
The red glow dimmed from his blazing eyes as the final systems   
closed.  
*I don't mind being alone.*  
  
1)---------- Preparations  
  
"Okay," Knuckles said to the Chaotix in a forcedly calm tone. "We  
have to come up with something, and we have to do it now."  
"What are we supposed to do, Knux?" Mighty sighed. "I still don't  
get how we stand a chance against a thousand mechas coming at us head-on."  
"Me either," Vector put in, "but whatever the plan turns out to be,  
I love it already."  
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," the Guardian muttered under his  
breath. Aloud, he asked, "Espio, when is the attack supposed to commence?"  
His metallic body shining deep purple, the mecha-robian answered,  
"The plan was for them to come nine days from now. Still, now that I'm back  
here, Mecha's bound to realize that I'd have told you guys the plan. He   
could pull anything."  
"'Only with the NeverZone's exposure can the Chaos Warrior overcome   
his enemy,'" Vector recited, leaning against a tree and closing his eyes.  
Suspicious, Knuckles asked him, "And, euh, what exactly do you mean  
by that?"  
Opening one eye with a coy expression, Vector replied, "I suggest we  
call desperately for help."  
It was midday on the Floating Island, the day after Espio's   
emancipation from Robotnik's programming. The five of them, Knuckles and   
the Chaotix, were sitting in a tense circle near the Chaos Chamber, debating  
over what they could do in response to the news the former chameleon had   
delivered. Not much was being decided.  
Lyrena, the mistling who had recently joined their forces, was   
currently unaccounted for. While Knuckles understood that she still had   
many things to think about herself, he was a bit antagonized that she hadn't  
shown up for this crucial meeting. She was the one with the powers around  
here; whatever plans made would almost certainly involve her as an integral  
component.  
With or without her, however, something had to be decided, and fast.  
In any case, it made the echidna a little nervous when she started talking  
about her powers, and even more nervous when she talked about *his*.   
"Who could we call for help?" Charmy bluntly demanded. "Who in   
their right mind would even try to help us stand against an army of mechas?"  
The croc didn't answer, except to turn up the volume on his walkman.  
"Espio," Knuckles interjected, determined not to let his friends go  
of on a tangent and forget their purpose here, "you've been on the other   
side. What do you think Mecha will do?"  
"Hmm," Espio sighed, focussing and unfocusing his deep blue eyes.  
"It's really hard to say anything about Mecha. He's . . . unpredictable, to  
say the least. I couldn't fathom him even a bit the whole time I was there,  
except that . . . "  
"Except that - ?" Knuckles prompted when the metallic chameleon   
didn't complete the statement.  
Espio scratched his head in bewilderment.  
"Knux, I got the distinct impression that he was, well, lonesome."  
The chortle came. Much as the Guardian tried to stifle it, it came  
just the same.  
"Mecha?" he repeated. "Like, are we talking about the same Mecha  
here, Espio? Mecha Sonic? Lonesome?"  
Swiveling his face haughtily away from the echidna, Espio replied,  
"Yes, we are talking about the same Mecha Sonic. He . . . well, he's very  
different when you're on his side."  
"But you're not on his side," Mighty flatly stated. "None of us are  
on his side, and we don't intend to be, either. That's the whole point of  
this meeting. I don't care how lonely Mecha happens to be; if we don't come  
up with a way to trash him and his kind, everyone on Mobius *is* gonna be on  
his side."  
"Exactly!" Vector exclaimed, suddenly returning to the real world.  
"And that's why we need to call for help. Everyone's life's at stake here,  
so everyone on Mobius should be willing to stand against the mechas here on  
the Floating Island with us! Or at least the Freedom Fighters."  
Knuckles blinked.  
"I don't believe it. Vector, you've just said the most constructive  
thing yet said here today. Let's get in touch with Knothole Village."  
  
"One THOUSAND?!?!"  
That was Sonic and Sally's joint response to the report from the   
Floating Island.  
"Unfortunately, yes," Knuckles confirmed over his wristband   
communicator. "And I don't think I need to say how desperately we could use  
a hand up here - "  
"Say no more, chum!" Sonic interrupted. "Just hold the line for a   
sec."  
There transpired a few moments of silence which, Knuckles was sure,  
were spent by the two Freedom Fighters discussing the situation and deciding  
where they stood. Finally, they came back into the conversation.  
"We can't say exactly how many Freedom Fighters will want to join  
you," Sally practically stated, "but you can definitely count on the two of  
us. Most likely, somewhere around a hundred of us."  
"When do you want us to arrive, Knux?" Sonic inquired.  
"I don't know," the echidna was forced to respond. "No one knows   
for sure when they'll come."  
"In that case, we'd better get there as soon as possible then," was  
the light reply from the hedgehog. "Can't be too careful, after all. This  
battle's probably gonna determine the fate of every free-willed person on  
Mobius."  
"Unfortunately, yes," Knuckles confirmed over his wristband  
communicator.  
  
The Knothole Freedom Fighters were likely to arrive late the next  
day. That would give them enough of a chance to transport not only people,  
but the supplies they would need.  
*After all,* Knuckles reasoned with himself, sitting on the western  
edge of the Island, his feet dangling out over nothing, watching the sun set  
with glowing shades of pink and purple and blue . . . the same colors as the  
interior of the Chaos Chamber, *just because I'm the Guardian doesn't mean   
I'm prepared to throw a party for a hundred. Now I've just gotta figure out  
how to throw one for a thousand.*  
He sighed, not willing to give into fear of failure.  
*Hey, Dad, I know you're out there. Maybe you can read my thoughts,  
maybe not. I don't know, I don't really care. But I could really use some  
help, right about now, you know, Dad . . . *  
"Hey there, Guardian," greeted a bright, yet subdued voice from   
behind him. Without looking, he knew who it was.  
"Where were you today?" he demanded of the mistling. "We were all  
supposed to meet and discuss the situation. Where were you?"  
"I," Lyrena replied, sitting next to him, "was floating in a nearby  
bush, listening in on everything. You see, I was there."  
All the fears and frustrations came to a boil in the young Guardian,  
as he stood and snapped at her with almost enough force to shock her off the  
Island.  
"Just who do you think you are?! A week ago, you were just a   
figment of someone's imagination, and a lyric in one of Vector's songs. Now  
you go around acting like you're all high and mighty just because you've got  
all these mystical powers that we don't, as if that excludes you from the  
things the rest of us have to deal with - and frankly, Lyrena, you're just  
as stuck in this as we are, and the sooner you come down to our level, the  
better for everyone!"  
The expression on the mistling's face proved that part of her wanted  
to cry, and the other wanted to flatten the scarlet Guardian into a scarlet  
pancake. She refrained from doing either, though, and stood up slowly to   
look the echidna in the eye.  
"What did I do to deserve that, Guardian? Miss a meeting? As if I  
could have been of any help at all, had I spoken up? You know very well   
that my knowledge of mechas and Robotnik and the Mobian surface in general  
is based solely on the rough account of events you gave me when I first came  
here. Even the Floating Island is a strange place to me. It's not the same  
place I left two-thousand years ago. My job here is to instruct you in your  
powers, and that's the only thing I can do. Any plan you come up with will   
go straight over my head. I don't even know what you mean by 'Knothole   
Freedom Fighter.' I assume they're friends of yours, but . . . do you get   
my point, Knuckles? I'm no help in such matters."  
"And how do you expect to get the picture if you don't level with us  
seriously, and soon? Since you arrived, you've been great about telling us  
all about the past, and yes, you did save Espio, and for that I thank you  
again, but have you tried to learn our ways yet? Not really!"  
Her eyes flashing, Lyrena drew out her gleaming sword in one swift  
gesture, and jammed it into the ground between them.  
"This is my way, Guardian, and it's the only way I will ever follow.  
I've learned about Chaos Energy and telepathy and transformations, but my  
way is that of a warrior, as it is with any other mistling. My duty to   
train you in your powers is a result of a request of a dear friend, not of  
my own desire. Don't try to teach me new ways. I'm over two-thousand years  
old. Too old to change."  
Returning her sharp gaze, Knuckles reached forward and tore the   
sword out of the earth.  
"That's a way I understand," he dryly commented, handing the weapon  
back to its owner. "Now that we've established some common ground, let's  
think."  
"I don't suppose," Lyrena began in a sarcastic voice, "that there's  
anyone else around here who can achieve an Ultimate Form?"  
"Actually," Knuckles replied with a grin, "there is. Sonic the  
Hedgehog. A friend of mine from the surface. In fact, a Knothole Freedom  
Fighter."  
Blinking in astonishment, the mistling stuttered, "Y-you mean . . .   
there actually *is* another?"  
Knuckles nodded.  
"His powers are a match for mine any day. At least, I think so. I  
really hate to think of the mess if we ever faced off against each other - "  
"Wait, I think I remember . . . yes! Was he the one who released me  
from the other Chaos Emerald?"  
"Oh . . . yeah, he was."  
"Goodness. I hadn't been sure if I'd dreamt that or not. My mind  
wasn't completely with me for a while after I'd come out. How developed are  
his powers?"  
"No more than mine."  
"Oh." She sighed and sat back down. "This does make things   
difficult. Knuckles, you have so much potential - if only I had more time   
to teach you how to use it . . . "  
"Stop right there. We don't have time. Maybe if you'd shown up a   
couple of years ago and said, 'Knux, I'm here to teach you the finer points  
of being a Chaos Warrior,' I'd have said 'Cool, bring it on.' The fact is,  
though, that I can't use my powers to win this fight."  
Now the mistling rounded sharply on him.  
"How else do you expect to win?" she implored in a stern voice.  
"I don't know, but to try and wipe them out the way Michael blew   
away the Firelance Army of Force would be suicide. It would be treading on  
thin ice, ice way to thin for my liking. When I fight, I can only fight   
like I know how to do. None of this mystical mumbo-jumbo."  
"This 'mystical mumbo-jumbo' may be your only chance, Guardian."  
"Me winning this fight using Chaos Energies is like you successfully  
planning a strike on Robotropolis. It's out of my league. I know nothing  
about it, and refuse to go trying things out during the final battle for   
freedom and peace. Not to mention the planet. I'll leave the mystical   
stuff to you."  
"To me? There's nothing mystical about me. Mystical. Mistical."  
Knuckles arched an eyebrow.  
"Nothing mystical? Then what do you call the knack for turning into  
a small cloud whenever your little heart desires?"  
Lyrena winked at him.  
"Not mystical. Some girls got it, some girls don't, and it's as   
simple as that."  
Knuckles blinked blankly.  
"Euh . . . okay."  
  
"And so we meet again," Sonic greeted, jumping down from his plane  
beside the echidna. "Tell me, Knux, why is it that the only time your   
people and my people get together is in a state of emergency?"  
"Just lucky, I suppose," Knuckles dryly commented. "In any case,  
thanks for coming. There's no way we could've handled this one on our own."  
Sally had underestimated the Knothole Freedom Fighters. Rather than  
about a hundred of them showing up, the entire population had agreed to come  
to the Floating Island that day, either to save everyone, or to make a last  
stand. In any case, there were almost three hundred Mobians now on the   
Island, at the moment helping to unload supplies and set up camps. Sally   
was trying to keep this process running in an orderly fashion while Sonic   
checked in with Knuckles.  
"So, do we have a plan?" the hedgehog inquired in a tone so light   
that it could only be a front to hide his extreme qualms over the upcoming  
battle.  
"Sonic," Knuckles sighed, "we don't really even know where to start.  
I think Mighty's pretty much certain that we can't win this, Vector's taking  
it as a given that we will, and Charmy's just gonna pretty much go along   
with whatever gets decided."  
"What about your mistling pal?"  
"She's torked at me because I won't take her crash course in Chaos  
Energies. I just don't think it's a good idea."  
"I agree. It's like cramming for exams. Realize the night before   
that you forgot to study a chapter, but if you try to cram it in at the last  
minute, it'll either work like a charm, or leave you uncertain on the stuff  
you already knew for sure."  
"Exactly. And that's where we stand here. Not much to build on."  
"No, not really. What about Espio? What's he think of all this?"  
"I'm not sure. He's kinda funny about the whole thing. My guess is  
that he's still in a bit of a shock over everything that happened to him."  
"Well, he'd better get over it before the mechas arrive."  
"I know."  
There was a shimmer beside them.  
Knuckles wanted to stuff his foot in his own mouth when Espio   
appeared, having overheard the entire conversation.  
"Don't worry about me," he said quietly in his metallic voice. "I  
know where I stand. In all honesty though, Knux, I have to agree with   
Lyrena."  
Unable to comprehend what had just been said, the echidna gaped for  
a moment, then suggested, "Come again?"  
Shrugging self-consciously, the mecha-robian explained, "When I was   
in Robotropolis, I told Mecha point blank that I saw no way for the Floating  
Island to survive this attack. That was an unbiased opinion, taken solely  
on reflection of the facts. And if we keep on our course, we *can't* win  
this battle. The only thing to our advantage now is Lyrena's knowledge of  
the emerald and its powers. You learning how to use those powers is the   
only way we could get even a chance at this."  
Sonic and Knuckles exchanged an uneasy glance.  
Too many things to think about.  
Not enough time to think about them.  
  
"Okay, here I am. What did you need?"  
About an hour later, Knuckles, Sonic, and Lyrena met down in the   
Chaos Chamber.  
"We needed to seriously talk to you, Lyrena," Knuckles sullenly  
replied.  
Looking back and forth between them, the mistling made no verbal  
response, but waited for them to continue.  
"You and Espio both seem to be under the impression that unless we  
rely solely on our powers, we won't be able to pull this off," Sonic stated  
when Knuckles didn't instantly explain.  
"Yes," the mistling replied, her manner strangely distant. It was  
a big contrast to the friendly manner she usually displayed.   
"Use our powers to do *what*?" Knuckles demanded. "I mean, what   
could we do with them that we couldn't do either without them, or with what  
power we already have developed?"  
Lyrena looked at them hard for a long moment, then turned away to   
face the emerald.  
"Despite its name, the Chaos Emerald is actually a champion of order  
here on the Floating Island. It's pure energy. Nothing uncertain or   
chaotic about it, if you know what you're doing. It's when people don't   
have a clue what they're doing and do it anyway that its nature is so   
unpredictable. It's not an evil force, nor can it create perfection in a   
living being. It's more like . . . vitamins. What my people and many   
others would do was to grasp some form of its power and use it to enhance a   
specific ability, not give us something we, by nature's command, should not   
have. My own race, the mistlings, were looked upon as strange by all others   
because we had a natural knack for a partial mistification even without   
using the emerald. Once we mastered our small portion of the energy, we   
could vaporize completely and easily, rather than continue with the   
difficult and unreliable transformation abilities we were born with.   
Others, like the Queens, used its energy to enhance healing powers, while   
the knights would use it to improve their combat skills. Unicorns used it   
to intensify their purification abilities, and griffins used it to learn to   
fly. We weren't really mystical beings then, and we aren't now. We're just   
enhanced in our own chosen ways. You, however, are a different story."  
"In what way?" Sonic inquired.  
"In the way that, having achieved an ultimate form, you have all   
aspects improved, not just one. We're talking, gentlemen, about total and  
complete invincibility. Able to heal wounds with a thought, able to be a   
fighting match for anyone, to fly, to vaporize, to decontaminate - this is  
the power at your disposal. It you two knew how to manipulate those powers,  
no army, mechas, Firelances, or anything, would be able to stand in your way  
against your will. When you transform, don't you feel the amazing rush of  
energy?"  
"Yeah, of course," Knuckles confirmed.  
"That's what's at your disposal. Not limitless, but more than you   
could ever control at once with organic limitations. All you have to do is  
to learn how to master the different aspects. The battle's already half won  
for you, what with the discovery of Power Rings on your side."  
One of Sonic's ears twitched.  
"What about the discovery of Power Rings?" he asked, confused. "How  
can anyone go Ultimate without them?"  
"The Rings are a convenience only. When used, they open small   
channels of energy within you. Then, when the emerald is brought into play,  
your body is already prepared for transformation."  
"So you don't actually need them to change?" Knuckles asked, trying  
to keep all this straight.  
"No, of course not, silly! As your mastery over your abilities   
continues to grow, your dependence on them will diminish, and eventually   
you'll be able to make the transformation with just a thought."  
For a moment, the two Chaos Warriors were silent. Then Knuckles  
spoke up.  
"And, uh, how long does it take to master our so called abilities?"  
Lyrena shifted her weight to one foot.  
"Taught properly, I'd say somewhere around seven years. In this   
case, however, I think we can do away with protocol and get done   
considerably quicker."  
*Seven years?* Knuckles though to himself. *Man.*  
"How much quicker?" he asked aloud.  
The mistling did some quick counting on her fingers.  
"I'd say we could get through it in about three hours. Eat first,  
though, because I warn you, it'll be a drainer."  
  
Realizing that they really had no other choice but to go along with  
Lyrena's Crash Course in Chaos, Knuckles and Sonic did as they were told and  
got something to eat. They also took advantage of the situation to inform a  
select few of their plans: Sally and Espio.  
"Are you absolutely sure that this is a good idea?" Sally asked one  
last time. "What if something happens and you're not ready?"  
"All the more reason to get going on this as soon as possible," was  
Sonic's bright reply.   
"I'm personally glad you're going through with it," Espio said in an  
undertone to Knuckles. "Every chance we can get, we have to take."  
"You know that if I didn't agree with that, I'd never be doing this,  
pal," the Guardian grimly answered. "The emerald isn't simple anymore.   
It's something totally different from the Chaos Emerald I was raised to   
protect. I'm really not so sure I want any part of it at all anymore."  
Espio blinked uncertainly.  
"You want to drop it all? But you're the Guardian."  
"Yeah. I am, ain't I?"  
  
"Mind you," Lyrena warned them when they rejoined her in the   
Chamber, "this will be far from granting you complete mastery. All I can do  
in such a short amount of time is give you a feel for each aspect of the   
powers granted you. Enough so that you should be able to use that feeling   
to pull you through more complicated maneuvers instinctively."  
"How?" Sonic asked, confused.  
For a moment, the mistling fumbled with a few words, but ended up  
just saying, "I can't explain it. You'll see what I mean."  
And so began a three-hour process beyond any explanation.   
  
"What do you think?" Sally inquired of Espio in regards to the   
current situation.  
"What do you mean?"  
"I mean . . . even if Sonic and Knuckles manage to learn whatever it  
is that Lyrena's trying to teach them, could we win?"  
The mecha-robian shrugged.  
"All I can say is that we'd have a better chance than otherwise."  
Sally sat on a fallen tree trunk and watched the Freedom Fighters  
carry on with their usual tasks, despite the fact that they'd been uprooted  
so abruptly.  
"If only . . . "  
When she didn't continue, Espio cocked his head to one side and   
asked, "If only what?"  
Exasperated, she flailed her hands around in the air for a moment,  
then said, "If only we had a better idea of what they were doing in   
Robotropolis."  
For a long moment, Espio said nothing. Finally, after much   
consideration, he spoke up.  
"I suppose . . . we could go check it out."  
Her head came around so fast that her hair tumbled into her face and  
seemed intent to stay there. After a few vain attempts to brush it away,   
she shrugged off the concern and demanded, "How?"  
Espio raised his hands in a calming gesture.  
"Nothing. I was just thinking . . . that maybe the two of us could  
scoot down to Robotropolis and get a first-hand view on the new plans. You  
have Nicole and I could get us there and back - "  
"We could," Sally mused. "With Sonic and Knuckles both occupied for  
a few hours . . . it would give us an edge to have some more information.   
And we're the only ones who could do it."  
"No one else would go for it," Espio warned.  
Sally grinned with the mischievous coyness that had often, in the  
past, driven Sonic up the wall.  
"They'll just have to not find out about it until we've been and   
back."  
Espio blinked, nervous.  
"Euh . . . are you sure you want to do this?"  
She stood up.  
"Of course. This is for Mobius. C'mon! The sooner we go, the   
sooner we'll be back."  
Also standing up, Espio suggested, "We'd better get out of sight   
first, so no one sees us leave."  
  
About five minutes later, they took off from the southern shore of  
the Island. It was the farthest part of the place from the FF camp, so they  
figured it would be the best place to leave from.  
As Sally, in Espio's metallic grasp, adjusted to the extreme wind  
pressure from flying with a mecha, she found herself marveling at the power  
and energy at his disposal: far more than any natural-born Mobian could ever  
have.  
*Sometimes it almost makes you wonder . . . *could* we be happy as  
Robians?*  
Then she mentally smacked herself for thinking in that manner.   
Although the powers of a Robian, and even more so of a mecha-robian, were  
compelling, they weren't worth losing not only natural bodies, but freewill,  
both of which were almost always lost in the process of roboticization.   
Espio alone was free after going through that, and only because of the help  
of an ancient being . . .  
*And unless that same ancient being can really show Sonic and   
Knuckles how to shoot off some major fireworks, roboticization is the fate  
in store for us all. Dang. I don't like these odds.*  
"We're almost there," Espio informed her.  
"Already? But we've only been in the air for a few minutes - "  
"Your point being? We're almost there."  
Sally shook her head. It was almost too weird working with a mecha.  
"Isn't this at all strange for you?" she asked.  
Espio landed lightly and set her on the ground.  
"You'll never know just how strange it is. But as long as this   
power is mine, I'm gonna use every bit of it. We have to go on foot, now,   
or else they'll pick us up on radar."  
"Fine."  
  
The two of them sneaked into the city, staying out of sight.  
Espio was astounded by the passages and secret corridors that Sally knew   
about from earlier experiences in Robotropolis that even Robotnik didn't   
know about.  
*At least,* he thought, *none of these are in my databanks.*  
Silently maneuvering through these secret passages and air ducts,  
the two invaders made their way to the central computer system: in the   
throne room of Robotnik's palace. Espio shuddered looking through the vent  
beneath them, thinking about how, only two days ago, he'd stood in that room  
alongside Mecha Sonic, receiving a commendation of loyalty from Doctor   
Robotnik himself.  
Now he was here to figure out exactly what it would take to put both  
of them out of commission for good - or at least, how to stop their next,   
and perhaps, their last attack on the Floating Island: the attack that would  
determine the fate of Mobius itself and all its people.  
He looked across the vent to Sally, who was kneeling next to it just  
opposite of him. She looked up at him for a moment and pressed a finger to   
her lips - they didn't want to be discovered, at least, not until they had  
what they'd come for. Nodding acknowledgement to that, he returned his   
attention to the scene below.  
It would be some time before they'd have an opportunity to hack into   
the computers. The throne room was occupied.  
SWATbots lined all of the walls of the immense chamber below, all of  
them standing at attention and battle-ready: awaiting orders.  
Likewise was Mecha, who stood in front of the throne in conversation  
with the good doctor.  
"We've tracked major disturbances in the Great Forest," Robotnik was  
saying.  
"Do you want me to check it out?" Mecha inquired in his eternally  
calm voice.  
Robotnik waved a hand at him.  
"No, no, it's not necessary. I don't think you'd find anything   
worthwhile. It is my opinion that the Chaotix, having been informed by our  
mutual acquaintance, have sent for help from the Freedom Fighters. Everyone  
understands what's at stake here."  
Mecha inclined his head in a slight nod: he understood as well.  
"What are your orders?" he asked.  
"Our attack must commence earlier than had been planned. They'll be  
regrouping on the Floating Island, probably as we speak. We must strike   
before they get organized."  
"According to Espio, even with the full forces of the Chaotix and   
the Freedom Fighters, the Guardian will not be able to fend off our attack."  
"And where is Espio now?" Robotnik retorted. "Although I do agree  
with that. Still, I want everything to proceed according to plan. How soon  
can the army be fully mobilized?"  
Mecha's eyes dimmed for a moment as he calculated quickly in his  
robotic mind.  
"They can be activated and prepped for battle by tomorrow night, at  
1700 hours, Central Standard Time."  
Robotnik rubbed his hands together with glee.  
"Good, good. See that they are, Mecha, and be ready for the battle,  
the TRIUMPH, of your life!" The doctor then turned away from the mecha to  
regard the room of SWATbots. "All of you, stand guard. Robotropolis will   
be in your hands while we are gone."  
A SWATbot stepped forward.  
"Will none of us be accompanying you, sir?"  
"Heck no!" Robotnik sniffed, as if sickened by the concept. "Past  
experience has proven that you would only be a liability. None of you stand  
a chance against anyone, you moron."  
Mecha grinned ever so slightly, enjoying the bantering of the   
inferior 'bot.  
"What of the mistling?" he inquired of his master. "You said you   
wanted her eliminated."  
"Hmmm, yes. Under other circumstances, I would take that up.   
However, in this situation, we have no time for such matters. She'll be  
taken out with the others when we attack the Floating Island."  
"As you wish, master."  
"Dismissed!" Robotnik called, climbing to his feet and leaving the   
room, followed by his convoy of SWATbots.  
Mecha followed at a distance.  
  
"Now's our chance," Sally whispered.  
Espio nodded and pulled up the vent, allowing them both to jump down  
to the floor below, and replaced it after them.  
Sally was already plugging Nicole into the mainframe.  
"We already have enough information to give me chills," she told the  
mecha-robian as he came up beside her, "but it can't hurt to have all the  
details."  
"I agree."  
"So," Sally said in a conversational manner as Nicole downloaded the  
specified data, "now you're an 'acquaintance'?"  
Espio shrugged.  
"Doctor Robotnik isn't exactly a fluffy type of person. I can take   
it to mean he wants my head torn off and placed on a pike."  
"Well well. We don't want that, now do we?" she observed with a   
grin. "If that was the case, I'd need to find a new ride back to the   
Floating Island, and I don't know how I'd ever explain it to Knux!"  
A chortle escaped from the mecha-robian at that, but he made no   
comment. He was watching the door with intense concentration.  
Sally noted this with concern.  
"Is someone coming?" she quietly inquired.  
He shook his head.  
"I don't think so. I'm just getting the strangest feeling that   
we're being watched."  
She opened her mouth to reply, but was cut off by Nicole.  
"Download complete, Sally."  
"Right."  
Sally bit her lip and disengaged Nicole from the console. She   
suddenly felt nervous. Very nervous.  
"Let's get out of here," she dryly suggested to Espio, who fully  
agreed with that concept.  
  
They retraced their steps from the journey in and made it out of the  
palace, and then the city, without incident. It was when they were just   
beyond city limits and preparing to take off for the Island that trouble  
showed up.  
"Hopefully we'll get back before anyone figures out where we've   
gone," Sally was just pointing out, when a shadow fell across them.  
Startled, they both looked up into the darkening sky, to see Mecha  
hovering a few feet above them, staring impassively down at the pair, his  
arms crossed.  
"Going so soon?" he inquired.  
Espio swallowed - a habit left over from the days when he'd still   
had saliva glands.  
"That's the plan," he replied in as casual a manner as he could   
muster. If it came to a battle with Mecha, here, now . . .  
Mecha grinned that little grin of his and landed gently on the   
ground in front of him.  
Sally was slowly backing away, getting the feeling that whatever was  
about to happen, she didn't want to be stuck in the middle of it.  
"You realize, of course, that I'm supposed to shoot you on sight?"  
Mecha lightly declared.  
Espio shrugged, the setting sun making his deep purple plating look  
even deeper than usual.  
"You haven't shot me yet," he pointed out.   
"No," Mecha admitted, "I haven't." He suddenly looked past Espio at  
Sally. "Don't move," he ordered. "zzzzt! If either of you try   
anything, I will not hesitate to atomize you in a second."  
Sally, being the clever princess that she was, knew he wasn't joking  
in his threat, and froze in her tracks.  
Espio made no move to look at her. He kept is gaze concentrated on  
his nemesis.  
"Since you haven't shot us yet," he pointed out, "I can only assume  
that you bzeep want us for something?"  
Mecha shook his head and made a clucking noise.  
"No, I wouldn't stoop to that sort of a level with you. We've   
fought alongside each other, and because you've proven to be a capable   
fighter, an excellent one, in fact, I don't intend to harm you now, unless  
provoked. That honor will wait until tomorrow night. Now that you've heard  
our plans . . . "  
"How did you know we were there?!" Espio demanded.  
The mecha emitted a series of short beeps that could almost be taken  
for laughter.  
"Your transmitter is still functional," he informed the startled   
mecha-robian. "We're on the same frequency. I could pick you up anywhere   
on the planet."  
Again, Espio swallowed.  
"You knew we were here - why did you let us get this far before   
stopping us?"  
"It's simple. I wanted to know your exact reasons for being here.  
So I waited to see what you would do. Now, before letting you continue on  
your way, I must, of course, erase the information you stole from your   
computer. If you please, Princess."  
Sally, trembling at the close proximity to the mecha, reluctantly  
held Nicole out to him.  
Mecha held out his hand, and one of his fingers folded in on itself  
and came out again as a computer linkup, which he injected into Nicole for a  
brief moment, then pulled out.  
"All information regarding the attack has been erased."  
"Hold it, Mecha!" Espio snapped. "What's going on? Why are you   
letting us go?!"  
"Because, my acquaintance, of our short-lived friendship. I'll allow  
a loyalty to overshadow a priority in this case."  
Startled and shaken all the way through by this reply, Espio gaped  
at the mecha, meeting the steady, red gaze with his own for a long moment,  
before slowly rearranging his expression to a frown.  
"And I have duties of my own. Don't expect me to repay this favor,   
Mecha."  
"Don't expect me to repeat it. I will see you both tomorrow."  
With that abrupt reply, Mecha shot up into the air and disappeared   
among the smog of Robotropolis.  
Not hesitating for even a moment, Sally jumped into Espio's arms and  
he immediately took off for the Floating Island as fast as his rockets could  
take them.  
  
Mecha Sonic stormed through the activation chambers in a wild   
temper, kicking at walls and smashing any 'bot who was unfortunate enough to  
cross his path.  
He'd set off here following his encounter with Espio and the   
princess to begin the activation process on the mecha army. If he delayed  
any longer, they wouldn't be ready in time, and he might be forced to   
explain his actions to Doctor Robotnik.  
*What is WRONG with me?!?!?* he inwardly seethed. *I should've   
dealt with them the moment they entered the city, or even when they were   
waiting above the throne room. Why did I let them go?! Whatever POSSESSED  
me to . . . *  
Even during his conversation with Espio, his mind had been engaged   
in an intense argument over whether or not to destroy the two right where   
they stood, but for some reason he didn't know, he couldn't do it. And now,  
looking back on the incident, he felt furious with himself, with Espio, and  
strangely enough, with Robotnik.  
In his anger, he smashed in one last control panel.  
*Perhaps I am malfunctioning. Perhaps that would explain . . . *  
Finally, the answer dawned upon him. The reason he hadn't killed   
was the exact reason he'd given the mecha-robian.  
*Oh no. Oh no. I'm still thinking of him as a friend - *  
If Robotnik found out he hadn't destroyed them when he'd had them  
caught -  
*Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I will not make the same mistake. Tomorrow, I  
will destroy him. As I said, I will not repeat the favor. Our relationship   
is now that of mortal enemies.*  
And he tried and he tried to fight the wave of loneliness that swept  
through his systems.  
  
Espio and Sally sped along, wanting to return to the Island as fast  
as they could and collapse, worn out by the strange encounter with the   
mecha. However, as they neared the Island and slowed their pace, Sally had  
to ask a very important question.  
"Espio, Mecha said you'd fought alongside him."  
Their movement through the air abruptly halted.  
"What did he mean by that?"  
Espio refused to let his eyes meet hers.  
"What's it sound like he meant?"  
"When? You weren't with them for long. When did you fight   
together?"  
Making no reply, but grinding his metal teeth, Espio continued to   
hover steadily in the air with her.  
"Espio, what did the two of you do? What sort of battle were you in  
with him?"  
A loud sigh escaped from the mecha-robian.  
"Sally . . . don't tell Knux? Or the others?"  
"W-well, that depends on - "  
"It can't be changed now. It's been and done. But I could never  
face them again if they knew . . . "  
Sally bit her lip.  
"Okay. I won't tell anyone. I promise."  
For a long moment, Espio still wouldn't say anything, before   
demanding, "Do I have your word of honor on that?"  
Now the princess was taken quite a bit aback.  
"Y-yes, of course."  
"Fine. I warn you, this isn't pretty. You see, right after I'd  
been roboticized, when my systems had calmed down from the mecha-programming  
and I was considered stable from the transformation, Robotnik wanted to make  
sure my programming was working correctly, because they'd never created a   
mecha-robian before, and weren't sure if I was a success or a failure. So,   
after I returned to Robotropolis after battling Knuckles here, Mecha Sonic   
and I were sent to . . . deal with . . . another Freedom Fighter village   
they'd discovered. My programming was fresh and fully intact, so I had no   
qualms about it, so when Mecha said to . . . I went ahead and . . . "  
Sally closed her eyes and exhaled.  
"Were there any survivors?"  
"None."  
A deep sigh escaped from the princess as she let it sink in that   
Espio, the gentle chameleon who'd been on Knuckles' side for so long,   
protecting the lives of those on the Floating Island, had wiped out an   
entire community under the orders of Robotnik. Still . . .  
"You're right. It can't be changed now. It's been and done. What  
matters now is saving the lives of everyone left on Mobius . . . and the  
Floating Island."  
"Yeah. The Floating Island. Let's go."  
And he continued on their way.  
  
Their journey had taken longer than they'd planned on. Although the  
trip was, with Espio's flying, only about fifteen to twenty minutes, the   
careful routes taken in the city, the wait above the throne room, the down-  
loading, and the careful route back, these careful routes more than anything  
else taking up the time, and their discussion also took a bit, so by the   
time they arrived back at the FF camp, the had a collision with Sonic and  
Knuckles, who were trying to find them.  
"Where've you two been?!" Sonic snapped. "Don't go off like that!"  
"Sorry," Espio amiably replied.  
Knuckles fixed him with a sharp glare.  
"So where were you?"  
Espio and Sally exchanged a glance.  
"We, uh, took a quick trip down to Robotropolis," Sally casually   
answered.  
"WHAT?!?!?!" exclaimed both of the Chaos Warriors.  
"Who's idea was this?!" Knuckles almost yelled, wanting to know who  
to shout at first.  
"Mine!" both Sally and Espio replied simultaneously.  
"But before you go off on us for being irresponsible and mindless,"  
Sally said, giving Sonic a sharp look - it was a reprimand she'd given him  
on many occasions - "maybe you should hear what we found out."  
"Fine, fine, what did you find out?" Sonic seethed.  
"The attack's gonna commence tomorrow night," Espio flatly stated.  
"Tomorrow night - ?!"  
"Yep."  
The two pairs stared at each other for a long time, unable to think  
of anything to say. Then Knuckles turned to Sonic.  
"We have one day to prepare," he said in a solemn tone. "What do   
you think we should do?"  
Sonic opened his mouth to reply, but a small cloud of mist floated  
up to them and materialized into Lyrena.  
"Sleep," she ordered. "Now, while you still can."  
  
Knuckles' dreams that night were among the strangest he'd ever had.  
At least, that he could remember.  
Never would he be able to put into words exactly what had transpired  
in the Chaos Chamber between him, Sonic, and Lyrena. All he could do was to  
just repeat to himself over and over the fifteen areas of mastery they'd   
been exposed to: fifteen areas that he and Sonic had no more than the   
vaguest notions of how to use. As he slept, though, the words continued to  
thunder through his mind, along with images, strange images, words, people  
he was sure he knew from somewhere, places he was sure he'd seen before, and  
all those other dream things that were always there, but could never be   
placed when awake.  
More than once, he awoke in a cold sweat, not shouting, but almost.  
Everytime, he couldn't remember anything from his dreams, only that they'd  
seemed important somehow. It was almost like his subconscious was adjusting  
to the new powers he'd been exposed to without the rest of him.  
In any event, his sleep was far from restful. The next morning,   
though, he did feel oddly refreshed, as well as being filled with the grim  
determination of a warrior going into his final battle.  
He could only hope that the final battle it wouldn't be.  
  
"What do you think, Knux?" Mighty asked as the echidna joined the  
group for breakfast.  
Knuckles shrugged and mumbled something about needing some tea   
before he attempted thinking about anything this important.  
Mighty took this as a good sign. It showed that his friend wasn't  
being consumed with false hopes, but was seriously ready to confront   
whatever should happen that day. The armadillo was still not very hopeful  
about the outcome of this battle, but he knew that whether or not he thought  
they could win, nothing in the world would be able to stop any of them from  
fighting this fight. It was good, though, to have a leader who wasn't   
deluding himself with optimistic jibberjabber.  
So he grabbed some tea for the echidna and pulled up a chair beside  
him along with the rest of the Chaotix.  
After they'd all woken up a bit more, Mighty pressed his point.  
"Do we have a plan?" he inquired.  
Knuckles smirked.  
"We have the only plan we can have. And that is to fight. Just to  
fight. Do what we know how to do."  
"What about you and Sonic?"  
Raising his eyebrows with an almost impatient expression, he   
replied, "We also do what we know how to do. That's all I can say."  
"Frankly, I'm glad," Vector snorted. "Now is not the time to crank  
out the serious strategy. We know how to fight. These baby mechas won't   
know what hit 'em!"  
"Vector," Espio said in a calm voice, "you're making me zzt   
sick! How can you be so naive?!"  
"Elementary, my dear Espio! What I don't know won't hurt me. Are  
there any muffins left? Jeez, the stress of it all's really givin' me an  
appetite."  
Espio only sighed in resignation as the croc headed off in search of  
breakfast pastries.  
Knuckles, on the other hand, took a bit of comfort in Vector's blind  
confidence. And maybe he did have a point. The mechas coming were little  
more than . . . babies. They'd never fought before: they'd only've been   
fully active for maybe an hour or two. What he and the Chaotix and the   
Freedom Fighters lacked in strength and stamina compared to the mechas, they  
made up for in experience.  
He hoped.  
"Watching the download while Nicole was hooked up to the system did  
give me a chance to make out a few other things," Espio said, breaking the  
silence that followed Vector's departure. "They're going to attack the east  
side of the Island first."  
"The east side?" Knuckles repeated. "Fine, that's where we'll be."  
"Shouldn't there be guards around the Chaos Chamber?" Charmy pointed  
out. "I mean, their main goal is to get the emerald, right? They need its  
power to conquer Mobius, so isn't that what they'll be trying to get at?"  
"Exactly," Knuckles agreed. "There're way more of the Freedom   
Fighters than of us, so we should probably get some of them to guard it - I  
think maybe one of us should also stay there on guard."  
"I'm there!" Charmy called. It seemed that's what he'd been hinting  
at all along. After all, the bee had never been the front line type of   
person. He'd often stay in the background while the battle warmed up, and  
cut in somewhere in the middle, just as the others' strength would begin to  
waver.  
"Fine," the Guardian conceded.  
"Also," Espio continued, "they won't all come at once. There's  
scheduled to be four waves of attack, 250 in each, coming at hour intervals.  
If we have guards at the Chamber, we'll be pretty much equal in numbers."  
"I know what you're thinking," Knuckles theorized. "All of us were  
unable to take down Mecha when he first landed. Point taken. Espy, we need  
to know some weaknesses."  
The mecha-robian stood and turned his back to the Chaotix.  
"Here," he instructed, putting a hand to the back of his neck and  
tracing down to the left shoulder, "is a main power circuit just beneath a  
mecha's outer casing. There're more of them, most more fatal than this one   
if ruptured, but this is the only circuit that you'd be able to cut without   
having a mecha dissected in front of you. The others are deep inside. If   
you can manage to get to this circuit and rupture it, the mecha's as good as   
dead, but will be able to keep going for about a minute before dying."  
"How hard would it be to break through the outer casing?" Mighty  
asked.  
Espio turned to face them again and grimaced.  
"It won't be easy. With a knife or sword you'd pretty much need to  
drive the blade in as hard as you could in just the right spot, because to  
slice through once you have an initial puncture would be just about   
impossible, and believe me, our local mecha population won't just stand   
still and let you punch holes in them."  
A quick whining sound grabbed their attention then, and they all   
turned to the source of the noise. It sounded almost like an energy weapon  
powering up . . .  
"Would one of these do the trick?" Vector lightly inquired,   
nonchalantly swinging around a lasergun.  
"Jeez, Vector! Where'd you dig up that thing?!" Mighty exclaimed,  
jumping up and running over to examine the weapon.  
The others just gaped.  
"Kudos from Rotor," Vector explained. "He says that they've been  
secretly swiping the weaponry from SWATbots whenever they could for the   
last, oh say, seven years. Plenty for all."  
Slowly, a smile spread across Espio's face.  
"Knux," he admitted in a low voice, "we just may pull this off."  
Charmy clamped his hands to his head as if in pain.  
"Guys, guys, hold it, hold it! I feel a plan coming on!!"  
  
2)---------- Implementations  
  
Sonic, Sally, and Lyrena listened with intense concentration to what  
the Chaotix had to say.  
"That's our plan," Knuckles summed up. "What do you think?"  
"I think it could work," Sally said, nodding. "I mean, it has as   
good enough chance as anything else."  
"Better," was Sonic's comment. "Because we don't have anything else  
planned. This is as good as it gets, and I think it's pretty danged good."  
Lyrena considered for a long moment before laying the verdict.  
"Yeah, it could work. It's simple, but it's fast. If you can take  
them by surprise, it could win you this battle with minimal losses on our  
side. I say go for it."  
"All right then!" Knuckles finalized. Lyrena hadn't mentioned any-  
thing about what had happened the day before, and although he wondered why  
she'd refrain from mentioning the Chaos Powers now, when she wouldn't shut  
up about them before, he was glad. "Let's make sure everyone knows what  
they're doing."  
  
It was about one hour before the mechas designated attack time. The  
Freedom Fighters were in position on the Island, and the Chaotix were making  
a few last minute plans.  
"Just be ready for anything," Knuckles told them by way of parting.  
"I, of all people, have no idea how this is going to go."  
"Oh, lighten up, Knux!" Vector snapped. "We're undefeated, in case  
you've forgotten."  
"Vector, if you don't cut out your blind optimism, I'm gonna shoot  
you before the mechas even get here!!" Espio almost shouted. "ZZZT!"  
"Don't kill each other," Knuckles ordered. "We're gonna have a hard  
enough time as it is . . . I don't think I need to tell you all what the  
chances are of us all coming out of this alive."  
"No," Mighty sighed. "We know."  
"One in a thousand," Charmy agreed.  
"Right." Knuckles' expression was somber, and for a moment, even  
Vector looked glum. "Well then, guys . . . till we meet again."  
"Till we meet again," they chimed, then broke away to their   
individual posts.  
Knuckles watched them all go their separate ways and felt a sudden   
wave of sadness. Would the Chaotix ever be complete again? Would they even  
serve a purpose after this battle? Or would the Floating Island be   
destroyed, along with the rest of the planet?  
He shook off the mood and forced himself to focus on what was about  
to happen.  
*Evaporation - purity - healing - flight - life - telepathy -   
energy emission - vision - morphing - teleportation - empathy - temperature   
- motion - openness - physical strength - *  
Those were the fifteen areas he'd been drilled in the day before.   
Fifteen different aspects of his powers that he'd never even realized he'd  
had before: aspects that he might be forced to put to use at any moment.  
Hopefully, he could.  
Sighing with uncertainty, he also headed for his post.  
  
He'd been in position for about ten minutes when Lyrena showed up  
beside him, and he suddenly realized that she played no part in the plan.  
"Hey," he greeted. "Nervous?"  
"If only you knew!" she said in a sarcastic, yet oddly elated voice.  
"Scared out of my skull . . . and loving every moment of it. You?"  
"Same . . . except for the loving part. What could you possibly   
love about all this?"  
She drew her sword carefully from its sheath and held it up between  
them.   
"My people are a warrior race, my friend. Chaos is something I was  
taught. The sword is something I was born feeling. This sort of thing is  
what I live for. In a nutshell, I'm looking forward to kicking some mega-  
mecha royal rear!"  
"Lyrena, you know none of our powers fit into this plan?"  
"Oh, of course not, Knuckles," she replied, replacing her weapon of  
choice to its lodgings. "It's a plan involving many people, out of which,   
only three, you, Sonic, and myself possess any real Chaos Powers. This must  
be a plan for everyone, something everyone can handle, otherwise it'll never  
work. What you two Chaos Warriors get to do, is be ready in case things get  
out of hand, and then get out there and kick some mega-mecha royal rear the  
way they were meant to be kicked!"  
"That's probably the most understandable thing I've ever heard you   
say, Lyrena."  
"Thank you. Now excuse me. I've gotta get out there and fight like  
the citizen I am. Just wanted to wish you luck, Guardian."  
He smiled, willing to take every bit of luck he could get.  
"Thanks. You too."  
She nodded.  
"Does anyone else get the feeling that after this battle, everything  
and anything is gonna make a drastic change?"  
"Mmm, I'd like to see you find someone who doesn't."  
"Well then, Guardian," she smiled, holding out her hand, "for now,  
forever."  
Taking her hand in his and shaking for luck, he replied with the   
same degree of solemnity and adrenalized joy, "For now, forever."  
Then, winking, she turned and left.  
Knuckles looked over the horizon.  
*Any time now . . . *  
  
In Robotropolis, preparations were completed for the attack.   
Robotnik stood outside of his palace, looking over the proportionately small  
army before him. After all, an army, much less an invasion force, was   
normally huge in such an empire as his. Tens of thousands, hundreds of  
thousands. Here, however, were a mere one thousand.  
One thousand and one.  
Mecha stood at attention beside his master, awaiting his orders   
silently.  
"Are they ready?" the Doctor curtly inquired.  
"Ready. All bzzt systems functional, on standby mode for   
attack. We can commence the moment you give the word."  
Robotnik turned a mildly amused eye on his servant.  
"You realize, of course, Mecha, that every one of those mechas in   
this army is equal to you in every way?"  
Mecha's eyes glowered for a moment, increasing Robotnik's amusement   
with his agitation.  
"Perhaps, ZzzzzzzzTT but they lack experience."  
Mecha refrained from wincing as the Doctor bellowed out a torrent of  
laughter.  
"Don't overestimate your own artificial intelligence, my friend.   
Experience won't be much of a factor after today. Now, give them the order.  
Commence first attack wave in five minutes. Then I want you to prep my air-  
ship for launch. I will arrive with the third wave."  
Growing increasingly agitated, Mecha's voice crackled a bit with   
irritation as he asked, "And when do I join the battle?"  
Robotnik waved a dismissive hand.  
"Whenever you want. You're still top dog among the ranks . . . for  
now."  
*For now,* Mecha thought, *forever. Forever.*  
"I will then be moving with the first wave of attack," he declared.  
"To see first-hand the expressions on the Mobian's faces when they realize  
that they cannot win."  
A cruel smile spread over Robotnik's face.  
"I like the way you think. Dismissed."  
As the Doctor turned to leave for his air-ship, Mecha silently   
transmitted the order to commence the attack to the mecha-army.  
*I don't care much for the way YOU think, my "friend" . . . there's  
not a mecha down there who could take me out.*  
  
The east side of the Floating Island appeared deserted at first, and  
in the fading light of the setting sun, it seemed quiet and peaceful. On   
the Island, however, hiding in the shadows, were 50 Freedom Fighters, one  
member of the Chaotix, Knuckles, and Sonic.  
Knuckles scanned over the familiar outline of the Island's edge,   
waiting for something to appear. The thought had crossed his mind that if  
Mecha knew that they knew that the attack was hitting the east first, there  
was a chance that the plan would be changed at the last minute to catch them  
by surprise, but they had to take Espio's word that it wouldn't happen. The  
"chameleon" had considered the concept for a few moments, then shrugged and  
said that it was unlikely. That was it. Unlikely.  
Now he wasn't sure which would be worse: seeing the army approach,   
or not seeing them until it was too late.  
Therefore, he wasn't sure whether he was relieved or not when he saw  
the dark shapes against the pink and orange sky. Deciding not to dwell on   
the rather trivial thought, he felt every muscle tense, and a strange,   
almost sick and yet enthusiastic feeling settled in his stomach.  
*Here goes,* he thought. *This one's for the planet.*  
There was no way to make contact with the others in position. He   
could only hope that everyone could pull of their instructions.  
As the mecha army had been divided into four groups, so had the army  
of Freedom Fighters and others on the Floating Island split their forces.  
Waiting now to face off against the first wave was their own first wave.   
Charmy was at the Chaos Chamber with 50 more Freedom Fighters, and Mighty   
was hidden on the ground below. Knuckles himself was positioned in a cave   
on a high mountain near the shore of the Island, so he was now getting the  
prime view of the mechas' approach. Nothing would happen - no one would   
make a move until Espio gave the word.  
*This may be it,* he admitted to himself. *I wonder . . . is there  
really a heaven?*  
The darkness against the horizon continued to grow closer and closer  
until Knuckles could finally distinguish the mecha fleet. All of them, none  
identical to mecha, but obviously just as dangerous. It seemed that only   
one had been granted the honor of Sonic's shape as a base, for the others  
had forms of other various creatures, most of which he didn't recognize. He  
supposed that Robotnik had tried to create the ultimate mecha by mixing up  
various combinations of animals to make a good combination, but had never  
been able to top Mecha Sonic in design.  
Now the scarlet Guardian was really on edge, watching them come so  
close - waiting for the signal before reacting to their alert and the cry  
from the Chaos Emerald, telling him that they were threatening the Island,  
that he had to stop them, that he had to -   
*Shut up! Let me think!!* he snapped at himself.  
Forcing the Emerald cries out of his focus, he concentrated on the  
plan. It was simple, very simple. As Lyrena had said, it was fast. That   
was about all it was . . . like, was this actually going to work?!  
Grating his teeth against his anxiety, he continued to wait for   
Espio's signal.  
*After all, we couldn't engage them until they land. Or at least,  
till they're close enough to be hit and grounded. Gotta wait till they're  
close enough . . . *  
They were almost in position. The mechas, the Freedom Fighters, in  
another moment, everything would be put into play. Robotnik's plan, their  
plan, Lyrena's twisted view of fate, a few random chaotic elements who were  
bound to make an appearance -   
The next moment was an eternity. The first line of mechas settled   
on the ground, and the next line flew low overhead, as the others all began   
to regroup on the Island. Knuckles crouched low, ready to pounce. His  
Guardian instinct was beginning to kick in.  
Glancing around as if in confusion, the mechas hesitated for a   
moment, then began to press forward.  
Then came cutting through the growing darkness a signal flare from   
below, one which exploded at about fifty feet and lit up half the Floating  
Island for a split second. And as that split second came to a close, it was  
with a torrent of angry Freedom Fighters lunging at the mecha army.  
  
Mecha watched from a small distance, reporting to Robotnik.  
"Yes, zzt about fifty Freedom Fighters have engaged our forces.  
They are being quickly overpowered."  
"Is the army having trouble with them?"  
Scanning the area with his digital eyes, Mecha replied, "None."  
"Fine then. Leave them, and go to the Chaos Chamber. Report on the  
situation there, and if possible, secure the Emerald. That being our prime  
objective, make sure we won't have any trouble in obtaining it."  
"Understood."  
Without another word, Mecha closed his communication line and shot  
through the sky to the Chaos Chamber.  
  
"Ready!!!!" Knuckles yelled at the top of his lungs, swinging his  
fist against the head of a startled mecha, who reeled back for a moment, but  
quickly recovered. It and three others converged on the Guardian, each   
calmly pointing the laserguns on their arms at the echidna, who waited for  
the longest moment possible before ducking out of their way, making two of   
them end up shooting each other and the other staring at them in shock.   
Rolling away from them and jumping back to his feet as the three mechas   
again converged on him, he bellowed, "ESPIO!!!! NOW, DANG IT!!!!"  
"Right!!" he faintly heard. The mecha-robian must have been some  
distance away, and hadn't heard the first call. Knuckles jumped back away   
from the three mechas, noting the other fighters having similar ways of   
dealing with the attacks. Except that it looked like a few were already   
badly hurt and/or lying dead on the shores.  
A second signal flare shot through the sky, and in the blink of an   
eye, they appeared. The other two hundred-odd Freedom Fighters, along with  
an ecstatic Vector, swung down, jumped down, popped up, jumped out into, and  
just arrived on the scene, taking instant aim and firing their energy   
weapons at the upper-left backs of the mechas, almost all of them hitting   
their targets and decking a good many mechas.  
Vector jumped out of a tree and landed near Knuckles, taking out two  
of the three mechas with two quick shots and a lot of manic laughter. The   
other mecha turned to regard the new arrival fast enough to avoid the fatal  
blow, but as it turned its back on Knuckles, the echidna jammed his bladed  
fist into the mecha's back, also rupturing the necessary circuitry.  
As Espio had forewarned, it took a moment for each mecha to die, and  
it was in this moment that most casualties occurred. In most cases, however,  
the Mobian at hand would manage to duck fast enough, wound up with fear and  
adrenaline, and there were less than twenty dead when all of the mechas were  
lying in crackling heaps on the ground.  
"WOO-HOO!!" Vector whooped. "Put 'er there, Knux, M'man!" He   
slapped a high five with the echidna before turning to hurry back into   
position for the next wave.  
Sonic appeared in a flash next to the echidna.  
"Okay, Knux, one down!" he said with a quick grin.  
"How we doin'?"  
"Seventeen out. Lot's down, but still goin', and not ready to back  
out. We're moving out our bodies to a kinder place as fast as we can, but  
we're wondering if we should just pile up the mechas somewhere - "  
"Forget it. Just let 'em sit there. It oughtta rile up the next   
bunch. Shake 'em up a bit. Like Vector said, they'll never know what hit  
'em."  
  
"MECHA SONIC!!!"   
The voice thundered through is paging system so sharply that the   
mecha almost lost his balance in the air. Quickly landing in the seclusion   
of a tropical forest, he answered his call.  
"Yes, master?" he replied through his wrist communicator.  
"I've lost all contact with the first attack wave! What's going on  
up there?!?!"  
Mecha exhaled sharply.  
"Lost all contact?! I don't know what happened; I'll check it out   
at once."  
"Yes! Tell me what's happening!!"  
  
When Mecha arrived at the battle scene, he inhaled as sharply as   
he'd exhaled at the report from Robotnik. The shore was completely still.  
There were no Freedom Fighters, or even Mobian bodies. The only indication  
that anything at all had happened were the 250 mecha bodies strewn about the  
ground.  
Unsure of what to do now, the mecha settled down in the undergrowth,   
hidden from sight, waiting for the second attack wave to see what would   
happen.  
  
Espio, again hidden along with all the others, knew that there was   
no way that they could've taken out Mecha Sonic with their ploy. The   
others, yes, but not him. He was too smart for such a tactic to work. Yet  
it seemed unlikely that he would not have been among the first attack wave.  
Mecha's style would be to . . . to be there to see the expressions on their  
faces when they realized they couldn't win.  
Knuckles would know if the Chaos Chamber was reached, so he wasn't  
concerned that Mecha had made his way there, but that could only mean that   
he was somewhere near.  
A memory stuck him. Mecha had said that they were still on the same  
frequency: that he could find him anywhere on Mobius. Why he hadn't been   
sought out yet made him wonder, but Espio realized that if he could figure   
out how to use that link himself, he would be able to find the mecha and   
figure out what his game was before it was too late.  
He opened his communications line, which he had kept firmly sealed   
since his awakening, but made no form of communication. Just listened. For  
something that might help. Somehow.  
  
The second attack wave arrived, approaching the Island far more  
cautiously than the first had, unsure of what they were to expect. When   
they hit the shore, the last place the first wave had reported from before  
vanishing, they hesitated before landing, or even coming close to the ground  
below.  
"Mecha unit," came the voice over their communicators, "this is   
Mecha Sonic. You are hereby ordered to land and engage the enemy."  
"What enemy?" retorted one of them with a huff.  
"That's what you're to find out!" Mecha snapped, taking no lip from  
his subordinates. "Now get down there before I flog you personally!"  
"bbbzzzt! Flog, sir?"  
"Just do it!!"  
The mechas glanced at each other and shrugged, figuring it wouldn't  
be worth their while to argue. Again, as soon as they hit the ground, a   
flare shot up into the dark sky, and an instant later, they were pounced   
upon by a crew of angry Freedom Fighters.  
  
Mecha watched the scene from a safe distance.  
*All right, I've already seen this part,* he thought. *What happens  
next?*  
*Mecha?*  
The voice in his head made him jump. He knew who it was.  
*Espio.*  
*You can't beat us, Mecha. Stand down while you still can.*  
The mecha allowed himself a low chuckle.  
*Your initial victory has made you rather cocky. Don't let it go to  
your head.*  
*Oh, I'm not.*  
A sigh escaped the mecha.  
*Fine then, let's get this over with.*  
He turned around to face Espio, who was standing behind him. The  
mecha-robian fired off his signal flare, then gave his full attention to his  
unblinking adversary.  
  
As the flare erupted in the sky and the rest of the Mobians charged  
out to aid their friends, Robotnik watched the scene through the eye of a   
sentry-bot he'd dispatched to the Floating Island.  
"So that's their game," he mused quietly. "Catch them off guard and  
knock them out of commission before they even realize it. Well, two can   
play at that."  
He picked up a small microphone from the control panel before him.  
"Attention third wave," he said in an amiable tone. "Commence full  
attack . . . now."  
  
Knuckles was concerned. After the first attack had ended, the   
Emerald had calmed down until the arrival of the second. Now, though, it   
was remaining as thoroughly agitated as it had during the attack itself. He  
again shoved its warnings out of his mind, figuring that it was just riled   
up with all the action, and concentrated on helping the others with the   
wounded. They'd only lost fifteen that time. Things were looking good.   
Really good.  
"Man, I'm tellin' ya, Knux," Mighty sighed in an ecstatic tone when   
the forces took a quick break for a snack, "I didn't think we could pull   
this off. But we're wiping some serious mecha royal rear!"  
"Has anyone seen Espio?" Lyrena put in suddenly.  
Everyone looked around in surprise. No one had seen the mecha-  
robian in quite some time.  
"I wonder . . . " Knuckles murmured under his breath, closing his   
mind to the outside world and finally listening to what the Emerald was   
trying to tell him.  
"Mecha's gotta be around here somewhere," Sonic concluded. "Maybe   
the two of them are facing off."  
"Probably," Mighty agreed. "Who do you think would win that one?"  
Sonic was forced to shrug his uncertainty.  
Knuckles suddenly jumped to his feet.  
"The third attack wave's been hiding under the Island all this time!  
They're commencing attack!!!" he yelled.  
For one shocked moment, everyone froze and just stared at him. Then  
all heck broke loose, because at that exact moment, 250 more mechas crashed  
their little party, pelting the ground with laserbeams and explosions.  
Reacting with no thought and just pure instinct, they hit the deck   
and clamored for their weapons.   
About half of the mechas stayed to engage them. The others charged  
for the Chaos Chamber.  
"NOO!" Knuckles shouted. "Stop them!!" he shouted at the others, he  
himself taking off at a blinding pace after the army.  
"Aw, heck," Vector grumbled, taking off after the Guardian. "And   
this was all going to well."  
"Vector, SHUT UP!!!" Mighty yelled at him.  
The two Chaotix ran after Knuckles to the Chaos Chamber, leaving the  
Freedom Fighters to fend off the mecha attack. Hopefully, they'd be able to  
overpower them, and if not, well.  
The sight of laserfire in the distance forewarned them that the   
mechas had reached the Chaos Chamber, and that the small guard posted there  
was fighting back in full force.  
  
Knuckles hit the scene, promptly slamming into an airborne mecha,  
jolting it off balance. As it turned to face him, a leveled energy blast   
from the ground ended its commission.  
"Charmy!" the echidna called.  
"Don't just stand there, help!!" the bee yelled back, firing as much  
laserfire as he could at the mechas, who were circling around the Chamber in   
an almost entertained manner. They were enjoying the sight of the   
scrambling Mobians, and they were utterly convinced that they would pose no  
threat to their superior design.  
Again, Knuckles wasn't aware of making the transformation. He just  
knew that suddenly, he was shooting through the air in his Hyper Knuckles   
form, smashing at any opposing robot who dared cross him. Oddly, there was  
a sense of possession in the power he wielded, only rather than him   
possessing it, it was possessing him.  
*Who cares, as long as we win?*  
He felt a heavy, sharp blow at the base of his skull, one which   
would have normally knocked him out, or perhaps killing him with its power.  
As it was, he fell halfway to the ground from his place in the air before  
righting himself and, shaking his head to regain his senses, looked up to   
regard the defiant mecha hovering above him. It had the form of . . . a  
possum? He'd gotten taken down by a mecha possum?  
Physical strength - energy emission -  
He wasn't sure if he'd said the words or not, but as they thundered  
through his head of their own will, his body seemed to take leave of his  
control altogether as he shot back up through the sky, and a feeling like  
nothing he'd ever felt before seeped through his body, even as a strange  
light exuded from his pores, gathering into a glowing "fireball" in front of  
him and shooting on ahead, gathering up the mecha in its power and reducing  
it to ashes in a few seconds.  
Taking in the scene with shock, another mecha - a wolverine (easier  
to fight, not so cute) - thought to catch the Guardian off his guard and   
charged from behind. Knuckles, sensing the approach, swung his fist back   
and connected with the mecha's face, snapping its head off.  
Now Knuckles regarded himself with shock.  
*What the heck!! How did I . . . *  
He looked to the ground. They were doing it. They were driving the  
invasion away from the Chaos Chamber, farther into the forests, to a safer  
distance. That's what mattered. He could put off the revelation that maybe  
he didn't *like* his powers till later.  
The Emerald sent him a warning: although the mechas were being   
slowly herded away, it appeared that one of them was returning to attempt a  
breach.  
Turning back in alarm, he was one of the strange creature-mechas   
he'd noted when the first wave of attack approached about to enter the   
Chamber.  
*If that creep gets its mitts on the Chaos Emerald - !?!?!?*  
The thought held him riveted for a moment, a crucial moment, when he  
realized that he couldn't stop the robot in time.  
Nonetheless, the Guardian bolted back, determined not to let the   
Island's powers fall into Robotnik's hands. Just as the mecha entered the  
Chamber, though, a blast of laserfire caught it in the back, rupturing the  
vital circuit that the Freedom Fighters had been rupturing all night.  
With a startled glance below him, Knuckles saw Vector duck for cover  
from the mecha's dying energy blast, as the robot, feeling its systems   
failing, shot one last bolt of laserfire at the croc -   
The Emerald cried out to him as the dead mecha fell into the Chaos  
Chamber, but he payed no attention to it. Rather, before he even knew it,   
he was on the ground, kneeling down beside where the croc had fallen.  
"Vector, don't you dare be dead . . . " he mumbled half to him, and  
half to himself as he rolled him over to see the wound. The sight made him  
wince. The mecha's blast had connected with the croc with devastating   
accuracy, burning through his chest, smashing his ribcage and incinerating  
his organs.  
A quick glance told the echidna that he was dead.  
Vector was dead.  
That was it - ? No last words or anything like that? Just POOF,   
and he was gone?   
" . . . no . . . this can't be right . . . "  
Knuckles wasn't sure what was coming over him. He felt neither   
anger nor grief as he would have expected, just a grim and set determination  
that he had to somehow set this right . . .   
*Life - healing - purity - life - healing - purity - *  
It became a chant in his mind as he realized what he was trying to   
do. Without letting the thought sink in that he was playing God, he closed  
his mind to all thought and let instinct take over - let the powers seep   
through him and do their job.  
The glow that exuded from his hands engulfed Vector in its light for  
a long moment. When it faded, all signs of the wound were gone. Knuckles  
sighed, feeling drained, and wondered if it had worked. And what if it   
hadn't? Then what?  
Vector opened his eyes and made an ugly face.  
"Ow . . . " he groaned. "Knux? What's goin' on? I thought I was  
dead."  
"You were," Knuckles replied, feeling oddly removed from the scene.  
It was as if he was an observer, nothing more.  
"Danged mechas," Vector grumbled, rubbing his head. With an obvious  
effort, he pulled himself into a sitting position. He was healed and   
restored, but being dead apparently left a person feeling quite drained.  
"Are you all right?" Knuckles asked him, feeling as if this was all  
routine: that there was nothing unusual about having just brought his friend  
back from the dead.  
Vector looked at him with an expression of confusion.  
"You tell me," was his reply. "I mean . . . I dunno. Are we   
winning?"  
"Not hardly. The Chamber's safe for now, but there're still the   
mechas fighting the Freedom Fighters - I don't know how that's going - and   
the fourth wave is on its way by now."  
"Dang." Fighting off a pang of weakness, Vector removed his   
headphones from his own head and placed them on Knuckles'. "For luck. Do   
me a favor and go blow them chumps off our island."  
The echidna grimaced.  
"I'm workin' on it."  
Vector waggled a finger at him.  
"Not good enough, man."  
Now Knuckles looked at him with almost a glare.  
"All right, all right. We'll beat 'em."  
Nodding, Vector replied, "Much better."  
  
Nothing happened.  
For all the time that had passed, for all the promises they'd made  
themselves, still neither had raised a finger against the other.  
"We could stay at this all day," Mecha remarked, "but then I might  
miss the moment of conquest."  
"Conquest?" Espio repeated. "Don't you get it, Mecha? There's not  
going to be any conquest. Two waves of your attack have already been   
utterly destroyed."  
"And what of the third? They have yet to be overpowered."  
"Yeah, the third. Robotnik went over your head. You didn't know   
they were hiding under the Island. Who knows what else he may have kept   
from you?"  
"The Doctor is not obligated to keep me informed of his intentions.  
And he has reason to be cautious, especially with your mistling friend in   
the picture."  
"At least I have friends, Mecha."  
For reasons unknown to him, Mecha's top boiled at that, and he   
snapped his wrist up to level the mecha-robian with his laserbeam.  
Espio hit the ground, startled by the blow, but not badly damaged.  
Still, he knew better than to lie still after Mecha had fired. Igniting his  
rockets and shooting about ten feet into the air, he kept his eyes locked on  
Mecha's and waited.  
Mecha hesitated for only a brief moment before launching up after   
him, colliding with the mecha-robian and sending them both whirling through  
the air.  
"I will kill you," he stated in a voice somewhat forced due to the   
powerful impact.  
"I don't much doubt it, Mecha, but if I'm going down, I'm taking you  
with me!!" Espio shouted, firing his rocket boosters and slamming them both  
roughly into the ground.  
Mecha's retort was quick and simple. He threw Espio off of him and  
smashed his fist into his face before the mecha-robian even hit the ground.  
While he was still reeling from the blow, Mecha brought both fists down over  
his head and kicked him in the stomach.  
Espio refused to be taken down so quickly, however. Even as he fell  
to the ground below, stunned from the blows he's just taken, he braced   
himself, and as Mecha again drew near, he ignited his rocket boosters again,  
this time directing the flow of their output at the mecha. The force of   
their fire knocked Mecha off his balance and flying back a few yards.   
Before he regained that balance, Espio rammed him head-first, again driving  
them both into the ground. This time, the metallic chameleon jumped back  
before Mecha could retaliate and shot at him the moment he moved to get up.  
Mecha lay pinned to the ground by Espio's laserfire for a moment,   
debating over a course of action.  
"It's not too late, you know," he heard himself saying. "You can   
rejoin us. Before it's too late."  
Espio laughed grimly.  
"Not on your life, Mecha. I betrayed my friends once because of you  
and Robotnik's programming. Never again!"  
"Merely a convenience?" Mecha Sonic reminded him with his old grin.  
Espio settled to the ground and allowed him to rise.  
"I lied," he replied.  
"No you didn't."  
"Sure I did. I just didn't realize it at the time."  
Without realizing it, the two combatants had drawn closer together,  
and were now only inches apart from one another.  
Mecha's eyes glowed deep red with an emotion Espio couldn't place.  
Before he could consider it very much, though, Mecha made use of the moment  
and blasted him into unconsciousness.  
  
Knuckles flew up into the sky and looked over the eastern horizon.  
With relief, he noted that the next attack wave had not yet come into view.  
Perhaps they'd still have enough time to clear out the third -  
No, the Emerald warned him, they were almost there.   
Startled, the Guardian tossed a look over his shoulder to the west,  
and sure enough, there they were, closing in. And still he could see the   
illuminating laserfire showing that the mechas and the Freedom Fighters were  
still engaged in their battle.  
The guards at the Chamber had gone to their aid, leaving the Chamber   
in his hands. He could protect it on his own - their help was needed - how  
could they fight off the remaining mechas and the fourth attack wave at once  
in their current status -  
Panic filled him. Panic, fear, terror, everything of that genre was  
suddenly within him as he realized that they couldn't fight them off. They  
just couldn't. He had to do something - but what? They were so overwhelmed  
already . . .  
It was then that the awful conclusion struck him. The one chance he  
had to save the planet. A solution he fervently wished he'd never thought   
of.  
*"And what if one had to be sacrificed for the other? The Island or  
the Surface?"*  
The option was there. Robotnik wanted the Emerald. If he obtained  
it, he would have the means by which to conquer Mobius and enslave its   
population to his own demands. All he really had to do to see that he   
didn't get it was . . .  
Did he have the right to make such a choice?  
*"I've worked closely with two Guardians in my time. Each  
of them would've given you a different answer to that question. The jist of  
it is: you're the Guardian."*  
*I'm the Guardian . . . so now I destroy that which I've been   
entrusted to guard . . . *  
They couldn't win the battle. That was evident to him now.   
Everyone on the Island was as good as dead. So did it really matter that   
what he was about to do would kill everyone here . . .  
*But it'll ensure that neither Robotnik nor anyone else will ever   
obtain the Chaos Emerald for their own purposes . . . I have no other choice  
of actions. I have to do it.*  
The Emerald, realizing his intentions, cried out.  
  
The battle wasn't going as neatly or quickly as the first two had,  
but the Freedom Fighters were slowly gaining the upper hand against the   
legion of mechas.  
Lyrena was, in essence, having the time of her life. People were   
dying all around her, but she knew that if she allowed herself to consider  
that for even a moment, she'd be overwhelmed and cut down. So she ignored  
all the painridden cries and continued slashing at the mechas with the   
accuracy and expertise she'd been trained in since her birth, and took great  
joy in kicking herself some "mega-mecha royal rear".  
Suddenly, a sensation passed over her that instantly drove her to   
her knees, so great was its power. Panic filled her as it had filled   
Knuckles a moment ago.  
*The Emerald's calling me . . . why would it be calling me . . . it  
shouldn't call me . . . where's Knuckles, what's he doing - *  
Without an attempt to explain herself to anyone, she fled the battle  
scene, headed for the Chaos Chamber.  
  
Knuckles approached the Emerald for what was to be the last time,   
for he intended to destroy it. If he destroyed the Emerald, the Island   
would crash and die, true enough, but it would also never fall into the   
wrong hands.  
*Only with the NeverZone's exposure . . . *  
The Emerald shone a shade of white so pale that it was almost trans-  
parent. It was afraid of him.  
)-He was standing all alone  
trying to find the words to say when every prayer he ever prayed  
was gone -  
And the dreams he's never known  
are still safely tucked away  
until tomorrow he just carries on . . . -(   
He wasn't sure how or when Vector's walkman had come on, or indeed   
how long the music may have been playing until the words caught his   
attention.  
Raising his hands to deliver the shattering blow to the gem before  
him, he couldn't fight the stream of memories that came over him. Of all  
those mornings spent here, watching, remembering. Of his childhood, spent  
under the instruction of his father, in which he'd learned to respect and   
treasure this stone above all else.   
Of the beings trapped in the NeverZone who would never be free, once  
he destroyed the portal.  
But he had no choice . . .  
)-See the devil - he is so intense  
see the devil go and change his name  
What's the going price of innocence?  
It can't be the same  
Is it dark when the moon is down  
is it dark with a single flame  
If there's glass lying all around  
I am not to blame-(  
*How did it all come to this? How did it all come to surrender?*  
)-And this he knows, if nothing more  
That waiting in the dark like destiny  
Are those who kissed the dogs of war and there is  
No tomorrow  
No tomorrow  
Take a chance . . .-(  
Knuckles closed his eyes against the shimmering and trembling of the   
Emerald and brought down his fists.  
)-Burn the night away . . .-(  
His blow had been blocked. He was grabbed and shoved away. Someone  
was talking to him - yelling, more likely.  
He opened his eyes.  
"YOU CAN'T DO THIS!!!!" Lyrena shouted.  
"I have to!!" he shouted back. "It's the only way we can save the  
planet!!"  
Lyrena had drawn her sword to him before, but never with intent to   
use it against him. She did now.  
"I won't let you!" she forcefully insisted.  
"Yes you will!" he insisted back, rushing back at the Emerald,   
willing to go through her if he had to.  
)-Pictures at an exhibition played as he stood in his trance  
Staring at his inhibitions - all the time believing that it now  
came down to nothing but this chance . . .-(  
Lyrena couldn't believe she was about to do what she was about to   
do. Her relationships with the Guardians had always been close and   
trusting. Never had she anticipated fighting against one of them. Still,  
she raised her sword as the Guardian again attacked the Emerald, blocking   
his way long enough for her to again grab him by the shoulders and throw him  
back against the wall of the Chamber.  
"Get a hold of yourself!!!" she ordered. "You can't destroy the   
Chaos Emerald!!!"  
"Yes I can!" he insisted. "It's the only way!"  
)-I fear you  
your silence  
your blindness  
See what you want to see -  
in darkness  
one kindness  
one moment  
Tell me what you believe - -(  
Knuckles charged at her, and when she made a move against him, he   
swiftly dodged her blow and grabbed her around the throat. He knew he   
couldn't kill her, not like this, he had grown to care about this mistling,  
but he knew he had to go through with his intent, although the outcome would  
not only destroy her, but everyone on the Island . . .  
She fought against him, but his strength was easily superior to   
hers. Within moments, he could feel her failing, and threw her against the  
wall she'd thrown him to twice, where she hit and slid to the ground, almost  
senseless.  
)-I believe in nothing  
never really had to  
In regard to your life  
rumors that are not true  
Who's defending evil  
surely never I  
Who would be the witness  
if you chance to die . . .-(  
"Knuckles," she weakly called as he again raised his fists to   
shatter the Emerald, "there is another way."  
He again squeezed his eyes closed and tried not to listen to her.  
"Knuckles," she insisted in a faltering voice, "open the portal to  
the Land of No Eternity."  
"I can't," he whispered.  
"Yes." Her voice was little more than a breath now. "You can."  
*Only with the NeverZone's exposure . . . *  
)-Father can you hear me  
this is not how it was meant to be  
I am safe and so are you  
as for the others' destiny . . .-(  
"Guardian, you must expose the NeverZone Portal."  
)-I believe that situations all depend on circumstance-(  
"It's written. It's part of the legend. You must fulfill it."  
)-Look away - look away-(  
*I promised Vector we'd win this battle . . . the Freedom Fighters  
all risked their lives to help us here . . . *  
)-Pictures at an exhibition  
played as he stood in his trance  
Staring at his inhibitions  
All the time believing that it now came down to nothing but this  
CHANCE . . . -(  
Quickly, before his resolution could be compromised, the Guardian  
known as Knuckles brought his hands down to shatter the Chaos Emerald.  
  
Espio regained his senses in a blaze of fury. Not only had Mecha  
defeated him, he'd gone off somewhere to wreak all sorts of havoc while he  
was down. The least he could have done was to either finish him off, or   
wait for him to wake up so they could finish the battle.  
Well, at least he could go aid the Freedom Fighters.  
Or so he thought. After an initial attempt to get to his feet, he  
realized that he was completely paralyzed from the neck down. When Mecha  
had left him, it was with the intent that he not follow.  
*Mecha,* he thought with his weary mind. *I'll never understand   
you! What are you trying to do? Where are you?*  
  
Mecha was off on a tangent all his own. Why, he didn't exactly   
know. He wasn't sure exactly what had changed his mind. Why he didn't kill  
Mecha Espio as he'd sworn. Or indeed, why he was about to do what he was  
about to do.  
Robotnik's airship was approaching the Island with the fourth wave  
of attack. By boosting his rockets to their maximum, he reached it quickly   
and went aboard, searching for his master.  
The Doctor was sitting in the pilot's seat, and seemed surprised at  
his entrance.  
"Mecha, what are you . . . " he began, half standing up. Then he  
reconsidered and relaxed back into his chair. "What do you have to report?"  
Mecha crossed the floor until he stood directly in front of him.  
"The third attack wave is being slowly overpowered by the Freedom   
Fighters," he reported. "All attempts to gain access to the Chaos Chamber  
have failed."  
"And why you had to fly out here to tell me this . . . but never   
mind. We will reach the Island in less than five minutes. They will not be  
able to defeat us. Their losses are too great already."  
Mecha tilted his head, his aura of impassiveness ever-present.   
Indeed, he seemed even calmer than usual.  
"Perhaps they will be defeated, sir. I cannot say for sure.   
However, I can safely say that you will not see that victory."  
The moment these words escaped Mecha's metal lips, the computer   
signaled that the airship was set for self-destruct in one minute.  
Robotnik jumped to his feet.  
"Have you gone mad?!" he demanded of the mecha. "You activated the  
self-destruct sequence!!"  
"Yes," Mecha replied with a nod. "I have activated it, so as to   
assure that you will not, as I said, see the outcome of this battle."  
From the tint of the Doctor's face and the look in his eyes, Mecha  
knew that he realized there was no way out of the situation. He couldn't   
get out of the airship, because the moment he tried, Mecha would cut him   
down like butter.  
"How dare you?" he seethed. "After all I've done for you - "  
"What have you done for me?!" Mecha shouted, shedding his pretense   
of indifference. "I'll tell you what you've done for me!!!!"   
Robotnik cowered under the anger of his creation.  
"You gave me life, an almost perfect design, power. You gave me an  
existence of MEANINGLESSNESS!!! I have no family, no friends, no purpose  
other than to serve you obediently until you come up with a more perfect  
design than my own, in which case I will be tossed to the scrap heap!"  
"Mecha," Robotnik said in a forcedly cool voice, trying to weasel a   
bit of compassion from the mecha. "I assure you that if you stop the self-  
destruct sequence, I will grant you not only full superiority over all my   
armies, but will guarantee that you position is never compromised - "  
"Oh, please!" Mecha snorted, releasing a blast of laserfire only  
inches away from the doctor's bald head. "I refuse to continue in a life  
devoid of emotion and friendship such as mine! And you will die with me, as  
thanks for making it all possible!"  
The countdown was at five seconds.  
*Mecha,* came a soft whisper in his brain. *I am your friend.*  
Mecha Sonic closed his glowing, red eyes for the last time.  
*I know.*  
  
When the airship exploded, it vaporized a good many of the mechas  
who had been flying too close. The others continued on their flight path,  
not sure of what had just happened, but knowing they must complete their   
orders.  
  
Espio closed his eyes and waited.  
  
*For a moment, he thought he was dead.  
That moment was spent spinning through oblivion, unseeing,   
unfeeling, completely numb all around.*  
But this time he knew he wasn't dead. He didn't know how, but he   
was in a teleport. And he didn't know where he was going.  
The moment when he made contact with the Emerald, the moment it   
should have shattered into a thousand pieces and sent the Island plunging  
towards its destruction, a swirl of nothingness had opened up and gathered  
him within itself, closing up behind him.  
Then Lyrena's words came back to him, and he knew where he was   
going. He had opened the NeverZone Portal. He was going to enter the Land  
of No Eternity.  
  
The final wave of mechas hit upon the Island, and within minutes,   
the exhausted Freedom Fighters and remaining Chaotix were engulfed in a fiery  
explosion.  
  
Again, the sudden burst of sensation left his mind reeling while he  
readjusted to his senses. And when he rubbed his eyes and his eyes adjusted  
to the light, he was greeted by the person he wanted to see least of all.  
Taking an involuntary step back, he raised his fists to a defensive  
position, making it known to his opponent that he was willing to fight if  
necessary.  
"Easy, there, lad. I mean you no harm."  
"No harm? Real sweet, considering that the last time we met, you   
tried not only to kill me, but everyone on the Floating Island!" Knuckles  
spat at the Firelance.  
The Firelance, indeed the very same Firelance who had forced the   
Guardian to locate the portal to the NeverZone not so very long ago, sighed  
deeply.  
"I told you this was a bad idea," he said to someone Knuckles   
couldn't see.  
There was a quick flash of something like fire, and yet like water,  
and a being appeared.  
An echidna.  
"It was necessary," said the newcomer. Then he turned to Knuckles.  
"Hello, Knuckles," he said to the befuddled young Guardian. "My   
name is Steven."  
"Steven?!" Knuckles choked. "Y-you-you're-"  
"The second Guardian," Steven confirmed. "Welcome to the Land of No  
Eternity."  
"But . . . shouldn't you be dead?" Knuckles bluntly asked.  
Steven raised an amused eyebrow.  
"Why should I be?"  
"Because you're over two thousand years old!!"  
Laughing lightly, the ancient, yet apparently young echidna replied,  
"This is the NeverZone, young one. Time doesn't pass here. No one can age.  
For that matter, all such functions halt. No one gives birth, develops   
disease, grows . . . everything stops. That is why I'm still alive."  
Knuckles blinked.  
"Euh, okay. But what's up with *him*?" he demanded, jabbing his   
thumb towards the offending Firelance.  
"This," Steven introduced, "is Milestone."  
Now the youngest Guardian whirled to regard the Firelance with shock  
and some degree of horror.  
"But-but . . . but I thought you were one of the GOOD guys!"  
Milestone grinned.  
"I am."  
Knuckles crossed his arms.  
"Then why, may I ask, did you - "  
"Knuckles, I think you should perhaps delay that question a bit,"  
Steven advised, placing a hand on the echidna's shoulder.  
He promptly shrugged it off.  
"Sorry, no can do," he sourly retorted. "Look, I don't know what's  
going on here. I don't even know how I got here. All I know is that the  
Floating Island's under attack, and unless you help us, the world is going   
to fall to Doctor Robotnik, once he gets hold of the Chaos Emerald!"  
The two ancient beings exchanged a worried glance, as if the news  
brought them a considerable degree of alarm. Then Steven nodded and   
Milestone vanished in his customary burst of flame.  
"He'll return in a moment with help," Steven explained. "It seems  
you'll have to wait for an explanation. For now, though, just trust me when  
I say that we're on your side."  
"And just what side is that?" Knuckles asked in a sarcastic tone.  
Steven raised his eyebrows.  
"Man," Knuckles continued. "This is what I get for letting Chaos   
attend to itself. But you know what? I don't really care whose side you're  
on, if you help us. That can be dealt with later. Right now, all that   
matters to me is saving the people of Mobius!!"  
Steven shook his head.  
"Knuckles, you won't believe this . . . but you remind me a lot of   
my father."  
Before Knuckles could even try to reply to that, Milestone returned,  
and along with him an army the likes of which the Guardian had never before  
even imagined.  
*It's a good thing I heard the Song of Legends from Vector,* he   
wryly mused, *or I'd be even more confused than I am now.*  
And so Knuckles returned to the Floating Island, along with all the  
beings banished to the NeverZone two thousand years ago.  
  
The portal Steven opened deposited them just outside the Lava Reef  
Zone, all the unicorns and griffins and elementals and queens and knights  
and mistlings and Firelances.  
Knuckles left them to their own devices and shot up into the air,  
wanting to see the scope of the damages. He'd spent too much time in the  
NeverZone, and in transport. There was no way that they could've beat the  
last attack wave to the Island.  
The sight that reached his eyes brought a pang of hopelessness.   
Everything was in ruins. Destroyed and burning. The whole Floating Island  
was a huge disaster area.  
Steven flew up to join him, but before he could say anything, a cry  
from the Emerald reached all present. It was not directly compromised, but  
the mechas had defeated the Chaotix and the Freedom Fighters and was closing  
in on it.  
*They've been defeated - *   
The thought hit Knuckles like a sword through his own heart. That  
must mean, then, that everyone was dead. Everyone . . .   
)-And does the pendulum toll  
against the side of the soul  
when he feels the final moment is near  
Do you rage against the dark  
try to rewrite the part  
turn around and face what you fear  
what you fear-(  
He still had Vector's walkman, although he just now remembered.  
*Where's Vector now? And I thought for a moment that maybe their  
lives wouldn't have to be sacrificed after all . . . if only we'd gotten   
here a few moments earlier . . . *  
A numbness swept over him as he tried to comprehend the loss and  
couldn't.  
"Stop the mechas," he told Steven in a strange voice, not noting the  
strangeness in his ordering a Guardian two thousand years older than he. "I  
have to go to the Chaos Chamber."  
For if the Chamber hadn't yet been infiltrated, then there was one  
person who might have survived the attack.  
Steven nodded and gave a silent command to the army, who instantly  
jumped to obey his command, and every face radiant at being once again on  
the Island, from which they'd been kept from for two millennia.  
Too long.  
  
Knuckles flew faster than he'd ever flown before, creating distance   
between himself and the army as they flew in the same direction. He saw the  
mechas beneath them, dodged the laserfire they shot at him, and continued on  
his way, barely noting when the army engaged the astonished mechas.  
He arrived at the Chamber and entered, misjudging his landing and  
hitting the crystalline floor with a thud. Quickly shaking his head to   
remove the stars from his vision, he found Lyrena exactly where he'd left  
her, unconscious against the wall, but apparently unharmed.  
Except, of course, for the damages he himself had inflicted upon   
her. Crawling over to her because he was unwilling to waste the time needed  
to return to his feet, he gathered her up in his lap.  
"Lyrena, you've got to be okay," he sobbed quietly. "You're the   
only person left in all the world that I care about . . . "  
And what if it came to pass that even all those legendary beings out  
there couldn't defeat the mechas either? Then what? Would he have to   
destroy the Emerald after all?  
Despair and confusion added to his grief.   
And now? The Firelance who had almost destroyed the Island now said  
he was on their side? Steven was still alive? All these crazy mystical  
beings he hadn't even heard of until a few days ago were now swarming over   
his Island? What if they did win? Then what? Would they want to rebuild  
their cities and civilizations? What would they want to do to the life on  
the Island now?  
*Never mind,* he reminded himself. *There is no longer any life on   
the Floating Island. Except for them and the two of us. My gosh, Mighty,  
Espio, Vector, Charmy . . . Sonic, Sally, Rotor, Bunnie . . . couldn't there  
have been another way?*  
Lyrena finally reacted to his presence, beginning to cough, then   
stifling it with a painful-sounding noise he couldn't identify, but blamed  
on his attempt at strangling her.  
"I'm sorry," he told her as she opened her eyes. "I'm sorry I   
choked you."  
"The Island?" she rasped in a weak and contorted voice.  
He sighed and looked away from her clouded blue eyes.  
"I opened the portal," he said softly, and could feel the jolt run  
through her body. "They came back. Everyone came back with me. They're  
dealing with the mechas now. The Island's safe. But we were too late."  
"What do you mean?" she inquired, struggling to her feet.  
He helped her gain her balance.  
"Everything's destroyed. Everyone's dead. We were in time to save  
the Island, but not the people."  
For a moment, shock and horror registered on her face. Then a   
fleeting hope.  
"Everyone came with you?" she repeated, still rasping weakly.  
"Yeah, I guess so."  
She smiled and put her hands on his arms.  
"Don't worry, Knuckles. Everything's going to be all right."  
  
They waited until the Emerald signaled that the mechas were gone.  
Knuckles didn't really care how the battle went. He somehow took it as a   
given that the mystical creatures would prevail. Despite the mistling's   
assurances, he didn't feel quite sure he could face the scene outside.   
Still, he knew he had to.  
As they reentered the Island, however, they were greeted by -   
"Hey, Knux. Miss us?"  
It was Mighty, Charmy and Vector, standing right there, unharmed,   
and wearing the stupidest grins he'd ever seen in his life.  
Knuckles took a shocked step backwards. He looked around. Everyone  
was milling about, Freedom Fighters, all of them it seemed, in perfect   
condition, even a few he knew for a fact to be dead.  
)-And if this is all illusion  
nothing more than pure delusion  
clinging to a fading fantasy  
Like Icarus who heeds the calling  
of a sun but now is falling  
as the feathers of his life fall free  
can you see  
see-(  
"You're dead!" he exclaimed, saying the first logical thing that   
popped into his mind.  
That seemed to strike the Chaotix as hilarious, seeing as how they   
burst into wild laughter.  
"We were!" Vector told him, administering a joyful clout on his back  
that winded him.   
"We got better!" Charmy added.  
Mighty just laughed.  
Steven walked up to him then.  
"Don't you know anything, young one?" he chided. "The Queens, they  
possess Life, and the Ladies have Healing. Various aspects of Chaos Powers  
that have kept us alive for the past two thousand years."  
"But - I thought you were alive 'cause time doesn't pass in the   
NeverZone."  
Steven nodded.  
"That too. There is much we must explain."  
"I'll say."  
Then Steven turned his attention to Lyrena, whose throat had just   
been seen to by one of the passing Ladies.  
"Hello, Mother," he said.  
"Steven, you're crazy, you know that?"  
And the pair flung their arms around each other.  
"I told you to let Chaos attend to itself," said a low voice in   
Knuckles' ear.  
Knuckles didn't have to turn to see who it was.  
"Hey, Dad," he greeted. "Long time no see, huh? Would someone care  
to explain all this to me now?"  
  
3)---------- Explanations  
  
"It's somewhat of a miracle that you came when you did, young one,"  
Steven was saying as he, Knuckles, Sonic, Sally, Lyrena, Milestone, and the  
Chaotix sat on the edge of the Island, looking over the ocean below and the remains of the first and second mecha attack waves.  
"This was the first time in two thousand years that we had an open window   
to leave. Any other time, we would have had to leave people behind."  
"The war has gone on continually all this time," Milestone said.   
"No one really could die on either side, because of the life powers on both  
sides. Sad as it may seem, there were a few of each of our kind who served  
them, giving them the same abilities as us."  
"We'd fight, die, heal, fight some more," Steven sighed. "There  
wasn't a soul in the NeverZone who hadn't wished at least once to die and  
stay dead. But it couldn't be permitted. Everyone was needed. It was just  
a matter of how many each side could capture in each battle."  
"About a thousand years ago, your time, the Guardian known as   
Franklin transferred what was left of Echidna Civilization to the NeverZone  
in another great war, similar to the one you faced here. The Island fell  
under attack, and he feared he wouldn't be able to defend them. That's why  
it seemed to you like you were the last echidna," Milestone explained.  
"They way it worked was like this," Steven told their audience. "A  
Guardian is born on the Floating Island. As soon as she is no longer needed  
for his survival, the mother was sent back to the NeverZone to assist in the  
war. As soon as he was no longer needed for his survival, the father also  
left. Later, as the young Guardian matured and learned of his powers, he  
would eventually also enter the NeverZone and stay there for a short while,  
during which his father would return to the Island, until he married. Then  
he and his wife would return to the Island and bear a son. And the cycle  
continued."  
"It seems pretty cruel," Knuckles observed. "I mean, if you could  
grant freedom of passage to a Guardian like that, why couldn't you let the  
others return?"  
"Everyone possible was necessary to win this war, Knuckles,"   
Milestone said in a low tone. "We all knew that no one could leave for good  
until everyone could leave for good. But the Island needed a Guardian to   
ensure a home for us when we returned."  
"Okay, I'm with you so far," Knuckles said. "I may not agree, but   
I'm with you. What I still don't understand is exactly how *you*," and he  
again jabbed a finger at Milestone, "fit into all this!"  
Milestone sighed and Steven intervened.  
"He was acting on our orders, Knuckles."  
"Who's orders?"  
"All of us Guardians. There are a lot of us, but majority ruled   
that this was the best plan. You see, we knew we were on the verge of   
reclaiming our people, but were also aware that we couldn't hold everyone for  
long. However, before everyone could be transported back, we needed the   
portal opened by a Guardian on this side."  
"So how did he get here in the first place?"  
"When Franklin transported the echidnas to the NeverZone, he had to  
lift the barrier placed on the Chaos Chamber by Steven here," Milestone  
explained. "It was the only way to get them from here to there. But what  
he did was, rather than lifting it altogether, make it so that anyone could  
enter the Chamber, but a person could only leave it into the Zone they'd   
entered from. It you entered from the Floating Island, you had to leave to   
the Floating Island. If you entered through the portal, you could only   
leave through the portal. Unless the portal was opened by the outside, and  
by a Guardian."  
"So why didn't one of you just come through and open it for the   
others?" Knuckles inquired.  
"Because it had to be OPENED from the outside and by a Guardian. We  
could get to the Chaos Chamber, yes, but wouldn't be able to leave unless   
you had opened the portal."  
Knuckles' brain was beginning to hurt.  
"Then how did we get back?!"  
"You didn't close the portal properly behind you," Steven told him.  
"We're very fortunate that the Force Army didn't notice and invade before we  
returned."  
"So, okay. I still don't get the deal with that fiasco with you,"  
Knuckles said, finally talking directly to Milestone.  
"Really, Guardian, you should have guessed that I was being helped  
by outside forces. A Firelance can manipulate weather and motion, but can't  
cause a person to disintegrate the way you did," he replied to Knuckles and  
the Chaotix.  
"If you didn't do that, then who did?!" Knuckles exclaimed.  
"I did," Steven replied. "The operation was performed mainly by  
Milestone and myself. We were a bit upset when you father intervened the  
way he did, but it all ended up well."  
"And just what did you intend to accomplish by all this?!?!"   
Knuckles demanded.  
"We needed you to discover the portal, and as your development went,  
it was unlikely you would do so in time without prompting. It was also very  
fortunate you made it possible for Lyrena's release - "  
"Why couldn't you just come into the Chamber and explain all this to  
me??? Didn't that ever occur to you?!" Knuckles yelled. "Sonic almost died  
because of your little game! And what about us on the Island? What if I   
hadn't figured it out? Would you have gone and killed us?!"  
"Of course not!" Steven and Milestone both exclaimed, shocked.  
"And if Sonic hadn't put his life on the line for mine, I'd probably  
have been dead outside Robotropolis! Didn't any of this ever occur to you?!  
You put our lives on the line, when all you had to do was tell me then what  
you've just told me now!"  
Sonic reached out and gripped Knuckles' arm, signaling him not to   
lose his temper. Knuckles took a deep breath and tried to cool his jets.  
Steven grinned sheepishly.  
"We couldn't tell you, young one. It would've been cheating."  
And whatever coolness Knuckles had achieved flew through the window.  
He jumped to his feet and leapt to attack his ancestor, and would've if not  
for the restraining grips of the Chaotix.  
"We've been had, Knux," Mighty urgently whispered to him. "We've   
all been had, but getting them riled at us won't help matters any!"  
"Oh, rile THIS - " Knuckles was snapping back, when a Freedom   
Fighter possum ran up to the small gathering.  
"Guardian, they've found him!"  
Knuckles gave one last, hard glare to the two ancient beings, then   
turned and left in a huff to where the possum directed, tailed closely by   
the Chaotix, Sonic, and Sally. Lyrena stayed behind, and Knuckles could   
tell by her expression that she had a few choice words for her old friends  
herself.  
The possum directed them to a nearby clearing where Espio had been  
set on the ground while the new healer population tried to figure out what   
to make of him. He was still paralyzed, and suffered from various other  
injuries inflicted upon him by Mecha Sonic, but didn't appear to by hurt  
badly.  
"Hey," he greeted them as they approached.  
"How you doin'?" Knuckles asked him.  
Espio glared at him.  
"How do I look?"  
"Right. Never mind. They'll get you back to normal somehow."  
"Normal?" Espio inquired, lightly implying his roboticized form.   
Powerful as he was, he wanted to be himself again. Not a vessel in him had  
any wish to remain a mecha-robian for the rest of his life, although he knew  
that it was quite likely that this would be the case.  
Knuckles shrugged.  
"Well, we'll see. So what happened?"  
Espio grimaced.  
"Me and Mecha had a tangle. It ended . . . well, it didn't end very  
well."  
"Who won?" Vector naturally wanted to know.  
Grinning slightly, Espio replied, "I don't think anyone *could* have  
won this, Vector."  
While the Queens and Ladies argued about how to deal with the mecha-  
robian (it was a little out of their league), Espio filled the others in on  
what had transpired between he and Mecha, and between Mecha and Robotnik.  
"For all the terrible things he did, well, I can't help but forgive  
him," he said by way of conclusion. "It was all he'd ever known. He didn't  
know better, for all his advanced programming and A.I. And when it counted,  
he came through on the right side."  
Sonic shuddered.  
"Okay, this one's going a little over my head. Having everyone   
raised from the dead and discovering that we've all been used by two   
thousand year old maniacs is one thing. I can buy that. But Mecha turning  
out to be a good guy? That's gonna take some getting used to!"  
"Raised from the dead?" Espio repeated, not having been around for  
this tidbit.  
"Everyone except for Sonic and Knuckles," Mighty informed. "Knux   
was off in the NeverZone, and so he didn't get killed, and Sonic, well,   
that's quite a story."  
"He also discovered Life powers, and when it became apparent that we  
were losing, he exhausted himself into a collapse trying to resurrect every  
body on his own," Sally explained with a laugh. "Someone should tell this  
guy that he can't save the world single-handedly."  
Sonic and Knuckles exchanged a glance.  
"Why not?" Sonic asked. "It only takes one."  
"All right, move along!" a Queen crisply ordered, waving her slender  
hands at them. "Let us do our job before we change our minds again!"  
A groan from the others standing behind her brought a frown to her  
face, but when she turned to reprimand them, they all were busy in involved  
conversation with one another.  
  
Later that afternoon, Knuckles sat alone in the Chaos Chamber. By  
this time, most of the newcomers had gone to seek the sites of their long-  
gone homes, so he had some unchallenged privacy for the first time in a long  
time. He sighed and touched the Emerald gently, assuring it that he no   
longer meant any harm, that he'd only tried to do what he thought was   
necessary. The Emerald seemed willing to accept his apology.  
A frustrated cloud of mist floated down beside him and solidified.  
"Knuckles, I think we've created a monster," Lyrena sighed, flopping  
down on the floor beside him.  
"Everyone settling in?" he inquired.  
"Not hardly! Everyone has a different idea on what should be what,  
who should be where, and who should be in charge of the place."  
"Hmm."  
"Mainly the consensus seems to be to keep the Guardians in power.   
The question is: WHICH Guardians?"  
Knuckles shook his head.  
"Not me."  
Lyrena blinked and sat up.  
"What do you mean? As the most recent, you have the best claim and  
most right."  
"But this whole thing is so twisted." He shook his head again. "No  
one's what I thought they'd be. Everyone's just so . . . I dunno. Bent on  
their own ways. They don't understand how different things are here from in  
the NeverZone."  
"That's why they need a modern Guardian. One who's fought his   
battles here instead of there, and not spent so much time learning their   
ways and forgetting the ways of now, here."  
"I just don't know. I don't like my powers. I don't like a lot of  
what I can do with them. I don't like the way the Guardians work. Heck,   
I'm not even sure I like leaving the Firelance Army of Force trapped in the  
NeverZone. No one should have to endure immortality, even if they're evil."  
The mistling giggled.  
"Sounds to me like you're having a post-war crisis, Guardian. Not  
only have the people of my time won their great war, but you've won yours.  
Robotnik is dead, and Fate is trapped forever in the Land of No Eternity.  
What happens now?"  
Knuckles pulled himself to his feet.  
"I dunno, but rebuilding societies isn't my thing."  
"But that's what's happening all over the planet, Knuckles! Every-  
one's rebuilding their lives! I know it's not what you're used to, but it's  
part of growing stronger: learning to master all different situations, not   
only how to fight. You're the first Guardian to not have to fight the   
Firelances. The beginning of a whole new age. I know you're upset about a   
lot of things, but this is your place. You think I like this? Heck, who do  
you think's expected to keep you in line?! They pin *everything* on the   
mistling!"  
He glanced at her with an amused expression.  
"Aren't you going to go back to your own people?"  
She snorted.  
"Let's just say, my friend, that I'm not on the best terms with my  
own people right now. They think my priorities are screwed up."  
"Oh?"  
"Yeah, because I showed a higher loyalty to Michael and Steven than   
to my own kind, and hence ended up involved in all this."  
"You did your duty! We all did!"  
"Do, Guardian, present tense. And now, what you have to do, is to   
get out there and show your narrow-minded ancestors how to work a priority   
to life in general. Prove to them that you actually can get away with it."  
"Narrow-minded ancestors?"  
"Argh! Y'know, Knuckles, I love Steven like my own son, but I'll be  
the first to admit that he's not only narrow-minded, but reeeeeally needs to  
have his head examined after the stunt he and Milestone pulled on you guys.  
That was compLETEly uncalled for."  
"You're tellin' me. But everything worked out all right, I guess."  
"Yeah. I guess."  
  
"So what's the plan, Knux?" Mighty asked him later.  
The echidna snorted.  
"Heck if I know, Mighty."  
For some reason, Espio doubled over with laughter.  
Knuckles and the other Chaotix looked at him strangely.  
"Euh, what's so funny?" Knuckles asked him.  
"Hasn't the humor of this situation struck anyone else?" he asked,  
surprised, finally restored to his natural chameleonic form due to a good   
bit of tweaking from the mystical beings.  
"Um . . . no."  
He burst out laughing even harder.  
"Stress," Vector whispered to the others. "He'll get over it.   
Maybe."  
  
And the sun set again over the Floating Island. It was the   
beginning of a new era for everyone on Mobius, and as of yet, many things  
were uncertain. But one thing everyone agreed on, and that was that no   
matter what happened, they would never surrender to evil, even if it meant  
fighting for two thousand years . . . or two months . . . for now, forever.  
  
  
)---------- Disclaimer  
  
That's right, everybody! It's disclaimer time! In case you haven't  
noticed, there really hasn't been one for the entire series, so I'm gonna   
sum it all up here for For Now, Forever.  
First of all, you know the drill, Sonic, Sally, Rotor, Bunnie, Dr.  
Quack, Knuckles, Mighty, Charmy, Vector, Espio, Robotnik, and Mecha Sonic   
belong to Sega and Archie Comics. All other characters belong to me, I   
believe, unless I've missed one, in which case, sorry.  
Some concepts, for example, the Day of Fury, Chaos Energies, and the  
like also belong to Sega and Archie, but I like to think that at least some  
of this story was original.  
Somewhat. These are all based off of one of NetRaptor's lead-ins.  
What does that mean? I entered a fan fiction contest and got carried away.  
Thanks to her for a great idea, though! The beginning of Priorities was  
written by her as a teaser, and I took it from there.  
I play too much Final Fantasy.  
The lyrics on Vector's walkman are all taken from three songs:  
Chance, Castles Burning, and Alone You Breathe, all of which are featured on  
Savatage's album "Handful of Rain." If you ever get a chance, check these  
songs out, they rock!  
Did the explanations in chapter 3 make sense? I tried, I really did  
try, but it's always harder to write out something than it is to figure it  
out in your head. If you have questions, email me and I'll try to   
straighten everything out. My address is echidna@neobright.net  
I play waaaaaaay to much Final Fantasy, in case you can't tell from  
my crew of mystical beings. The urge was there to give the Queens not only  
Life2, but White and Wall, but I managed to restrain myself.  
Now I must apologize, not only for a disclaimer that is far too   
long, but for the delays in releasing this story. See, it got off to a good  
start right after I finished Loyalties, but then it just sort of slumped. I  
tried, really, but it was really hard to get in the right frame of mind, or  
at least that's the excuse I'm handing out. I don't know, this part of the  
story just got really hard to write, so for a long time I averaged about a  
paragraph a month, until one Monday when I was home, very sick, and should  
have been writing an obituary for an animal of my choosing for Biology (Oh  
please, don't ask) I figured I'd put this off for long enough, and just   
wrote the thing.  
(Clovis says I play too much Final Fantasy. Hi, T.K.!)  
I would like to thank everyone who stayed on my case about this   
story. No, I wasn't avoiding you, and I really did read your messages, and  
if not for you guys, this bugger may have been about a year before coming  
out. Argh. Thanks, everybody!  
ARE THERE ANY CANADIANS IN THE CROWD TONIGHT?!?!?!  
Okay, are there any Canadians who watch Canadian TV? Are there any non-  
Canadians who watch Canadian TV? Basically, is there anyone else who has  
noticed the Canadian Ford Slogan? Picture this, I'm watching a hockey game, and  
on comes this commercial: Ford. For Now, Forever. Let me tell you, when I   
first saw that, I jumped up and screamed. Literally.  
And so ends my second Sonic Fanfic series. Hope you all enjoyed it!  
Just remember: Sonic Fanfic is NOT dead! As long as there're people like us  
out there it will live and thrive, for now, forever!  
  
P.S. Did you know that in the Microsoft Word Spellchecker, it suggests that instead   
of using lasergun, you should use the proper spelling of lasagna? That puts a whole   
new light on things!   



End file.
